


A Twist in the Story

by HypersomniacGrad



Category: Pitch Perfect (Movies)
Genre: DSM will pop up too ;), F/F, Humor, PP2 rehaul, Romance, Some melancholic hues, perhaps a cameo by Death
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-30
Updated: 2018-10-15
Packaged: 2018-10-25 05:26:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 16
Words: 46,235
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10757637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HypersomniacGrad/pseuds/HypersomniacGrad
Summary: After tragedy strikes, Beca comes face to face with St. Peter himself, her life about to be judged to find where she will be sent to. Except, she never really 'lived'. Having missed out on what was right in front of her - the friends and love she kept out thanks to the walls she built - Beca is allowed to re-live a year of her life and learn what it is to truly be alive.





	1. At the Gates

**Author's Note:**

> I told myself I wasn't going to start another story while finishing up/in the middle of other ongoing ones. I told myself I won't start this until Summer… but… well… close enough... (it is LDOC yesterda for the underrads at our university, so...)
> 
> Updates would be irregular until I finish my 'Your Lie in April' fic (I plan to finish that one first) but anyways, here is the last of planned last four Bechloe fics I had. I might write another fic after the third movie, who knows, but this one is sort of a rehaul of PP2 mixed with my usual kooky ideas and my seeming obsession on 'killing' Beca/giving her near-death experiences… On that note, no death is permanent is all I say. Don't have any hospitals scenes planned, and we might get to see my fave OCs from other, older fics, if you know what I mean ;) If you guys are worried, this one won't be angsty, and more of a hint of melancholy on missed chances along with pure and utter shenanigans so there's your hint. I promise this! You can hold it against me if something incredibly angsty comes up (I'm actively trying to avoid that here).
> 
> I don't own pitch perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I told myself I wasn't going to start another story while finishing up/in the middle of other ongoing ones. I told myself I won't start this until Summer… but… well… close enough... (it is LDOC yesterda for the underrads at our university, so...)
> 
> Updates would be irregular until I finish my 'Your Lie in April' fic (I plan to finish that one first) but anyways, here is the last of planned last four Bechloe fics I had. I might write another fic after the third movie, who knows, but this one is sort of a rehaul of PP2 mixed with my usual kooky ideas and my seeming obsession on 'killing' Beca/giving her near-death experiences… On that note, no death is permanent is all I say. Don't have any hospitals scenes planned, and we might get to see my fave OCs from other, older fics, if you know what I mean ;) If you guys are worried, this one won't be angsty, and more of a hint of melancholy on missed chances along with pure and utter shenanigans so there's your hint. I promise this! You can hold it against me if something incredibly angsty comes up (I'm actively trying to avoid that here).
> 
> I don't own pitch perfect.

It was one hell of a way to go, or so Beca thought.

She didn't even have to face the decline of her career.

She would be remembered and celebrated as one of the best musical producers in the world, her name immortalized by the tracks she worked on and songs she produced, all honored by the famous artists she worked with. Really, all in all, it wasn't that bad.

She was fresh out of college when she hit her luck. Who knew listening to her father would pay of once in her life. Although, if she were being honest, it was more of the influence of her sort of college senior at the time she first stepped into Barden, and the suggestion her father made to finish college and give it a try for a few more years. She got a degree, secured a great internship thanks to her steady gig of helming Barden's most popular radio station a year after suffering through intern grunt work. And as soon as she was out of school, her boss at her intern job managed to introduce her to some pretty important people, securing great opportunities to work with the best of the best of the people in the music industry.

Things kind of just snowballed from there. College allowed for Beca to hone her skills a bit more, do her research about the business, and prep herself. It bought her time to become the best, and with nothing much to distract her, Beca threw herself headlong into her work. Music was her passion, her inspiration, her great love.

It was her life.

And nothing much else.

The next three years after college, she worked hard. She partied a little, mingled with the rich and famous, experience her dream of becoming one of the hottest DJs around. She worked with her idols, she became big and famous, just as she had planned.

Yep, she was at the peak of her career when some son of a privileged high society couple living a floor above her unit at the most expensive residential towers in LA decided to throw a party with his fellow senior high school buddies – the soon to be frat boy crowd – and one stupid decision after another, or so it had happened, a massive fire spread across their side of the building.

No she didn't burn into a crisp. Beca, despite her usual obliviousness to the obvious, noticed what was happening soon after the fire started.

Heck, she even managed to get out of the building.

But in the process, of evacuating she ended up going back a floor she passed by down to help a child who seemed at a loss with what was happening. She could only guess that the poor little boy was left behind by a frantic babysitter who was surprised by the sudden lively blaring of the fire alarm going off in the building.

She managed to take the child down with her, ensure he got the medical attention he needed before collapsing herself, coughing.

And coughing.

And coughing.

And then _succumbing_ before even the help she needed was given to her.

Beca wasn't sure about the _how_ , she was only sure of the _where_ part of her question.

Because surely she was standing amidst tall pearly white gates. In front of her was a scruffy old man with a beard, looking at whatever it was that was written on the scroll – yep, scroll – in his hand, once in a while regarding Beca from behind an elevated podium.

He kept sighing, and sighing, and sighing that it was driving Beca insane, but then again she chose to take comfort in the thought that she was standing in front _this_ place.

Not in front of the gates of the _other_ place.

"You okay there?" Beca asked uncertainly as she heard the old man sigh for what felt like the thousandth time.

The old man procured a bell and summoned his two apprentice. Once was a tall brunette, she looked quite shy with the way she regarded Beca, but she seemed nice. Young and less experienced, at least, than the other one.

And the other one.

Oh, the other one.

Beca was sure she's seen the stupid grin and blonde locks before. This time all dressed in white, as everyone else was.

"Luke!" Beca pretty much exclaimed. It's been a long time since she'd seen the face of her supposed college senior. The same guy who urged her to stay on the path she was on in college. Same guy who passed the keys to the booth to her in the radio station, appointing her the new manager and head DJ.

"Oh, I was afraid we'd end up like this!" he said, shaking his head.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, completely dumbfounded.

"He's a guardian angel, like me." the brunette had replied.

"Like, my guardian angel?" Beca asked, incredibly weirded words 'angel' and 'Luke' being used together in one sentence just never crossed her mind. Ever. On one hand, he did insist she stay on the path she did. The one that gave her the success she had the chance to live out.

On the other, this was the guy who insisted on calling her 'Becky' for an entire year.

Although it kind of made sense now that he never gained weight and kept his washboard abs with all the burgers he consumed in a day.

"No, sadly, not yours Becky." Luke replied. "But a guardian angel, yes."

And, ah, there he goes again with the infuriating nickname.

Seriously, did whoever appoint Luke as a guardian angel or something not consider his general Luke-ness a factor in any of this?

"But you staying on the path you did choose for yourself in the end was sort of essential for my, let's say, person of interest. Fate asked me to keep an eye out on you two, however…" Luke then went on, taking Beca out of her own reverie, before simply shrugging as the rest of what he was about to say remained shrouded in mystery.

Beca reckoned she wasn't supposed to know that, especially with how the gruffy old man was glaring at him to keep his mouth shut.

"I'm sorry Beca, I felt like I'm the one who messed up." the girl with Luke then said. " _I'm_ your guardian angel." she then clarified. "And now here you are. A _lost soul_."

"A what?" Beca asked, incredibly confused.

"Someone who cannot be judged because they had not _lived_." the gruffy old man then said. "Rebecca Mitchell, you have no place in the afterlife because we cannot find you one. Most of your transgressions are minor, and most of your good points are too. You made an impact in your career, yes, but your life has been the most mundane version it could possibly be, merely existing behind your walls and keeping people at arms length. You failed to learn what it was that should give your life what it means, at least for you. You are one of the rare cases we have been getting more and more this days. You dared not live. You dared not risk. You dared not take any chances. Bottom line, you dared not."

"And who is this? Yoda? Cause a bit more and he'll be going all ' _do or do not, there is no try_ ' on me." Beca replied. "And that's Beca, by the way. I'm sorry for the sarcasm but I'm a little…"

" _Lost?_ " the brunette then finished for her.

"To clarify what ol' Pete here is saying, maybe you did reach your dream Beca. You left behind something with work, but you did not experience life. Again, you stayed behind your closed walls, you didn't see the beauty of the world and all that jazz. You merely existed. Walked the halls of the world with your eye on the prize, your ears closed off to the voices that may reach you. You made mistakes sure. You faced success too. But you, Beca, didn't _live_."

"But I mean, I was alive mere moment ago, wasn't I?" Beca tried to argue.

"Ugh, what is it with this day and age that they don't understand that there is more to life than simply attaining mundane items, titles, and things?" St. Peter then asked, his hands automatically reaching for the sides of his temples. "Nevertheless Beca Mitchell, you merely did small things that cancelled each other out. The one act of daring you took was to save that boy's life, but he was already meant to survive the tragedy and _you_ were never really supposed to be a part of it had you chosen to – what does the youth say, live a little?"

"I believe there was a time ' _YOLO'_ would be more appropriate." Luke interjected.

"Don't start." St. Peter replied with a heavy sigh.

"So you're saying, I missed out on the best parts of my life? Is that it? Or what could've been the best parts of my life?"

"Yes!" Luke, the brunette girl whose name she still didn't catch, and St. Peter all chorused rather exasperatedly.

"Look, we all have sins to atone for, but a _lost soul_ becomes a _lost soul_ because they have not found the meaning of what it is to be alive. To treasure what is supposed to be priceless. Your life, Ms. Mitchell, can be summarized by the same old routine you launched yourself in the different chapters of your life. You saw the world, true, but you saw it in gray, so to speak."

"So what are we to do with her then?" Luke then asked St. Peter.

"What would be her trial?" the brunette then asked.

"Trial?" Beca asked sounding a little worried. "What trial?"

Because no, she didn't like the sound of the word trial.

"Lost souls must pass a test. They are placed in a situation where they would either realize the meaning of their lives, and all, or fail and well… let's not hope you'll need to know what follows that." Luke then said.

"Oooh! I know, how about…" the brunette then asked, pulling Luke and St. Peter close into a huddle as they exchanged whispers.

Beca would have tried eavesdropping, but she was scared that this might already be her test and that eavesdropping would mean failing and… yeah… she didn't want to know what happens if one fails.

So Beca waited patiently to hear what they were deliberating about.

* * *

"No." Luke argued. He knew it wasn't his job to decide what would be Beca's test. That's for St. Peter.

And really, he shouldn't have a say in this, but Beca's fate was intertwined with the person tasked to him, and he could only list so many missed chances where they could've affected each other's lives the way they were supposed to.

Bring the best out of each other and all.

And, being close friends with Fate, of course, allowed Luke to know what the written pages of her life – the ones that never made it to the binding – could've been.

There was that time freshman year, during the campus-wide party to celebrate the last day of classes. Their brief encounter as Beca left the party just as his person arrived.

But honestly, speaking of freshman year, there were just too many chances then.

Missed chances that affected every year that followed.

There's also that time during sophomore year, when Luke visited his person, who was having a hard time then, when Beca's college best friend, Jesse Swanson, dragged her into a Trebles party that she, once again, quickly ditched.

Then there was that time during junior year when they were both stuck in an old record store as storm raged on outside. They almost had truly connected then.

 _Almost_.

But _almost_ was never enough.

 _Almost_ is never good enough.

"It has to be senior year!" Emily, Beca's guardian angel, argued. "That was when things took a turn for the worse! Look, the Bellas managed to pull it together their freshman year because they heard one of Beca's mixes, the one you played, in time to take inspiration from that. Sophomore year and junior year of college, they still had their stuff together. But senior year is when things fell apart. When the absence of Beca's presence in all their lives deeply affected them and the rest of their still unfolding stories."

"Emily is right, Luke." St. Peter then said. "Even after then, Beca managed to find opportunities that could have set things right, or rather, Fate had allowed for such, but our little _lost soul_ still defiantly chose to close off her world as she kept people at an arm's length away."

"Well, if you think it would be the best, then I'm in." Luke then said.

"And of course, you will be her monitor, Emily. As her guardian angel, it is your responsibility to make sure she is safe from _reapers_ who would try to intervene. We cannot let any of them drag her to hell. Remember that your charge is someone who can affect the lives of many others."

"Thank you!" Emily then exclaimed. "And I promise, I'll work hard. I won't mess this up!"

The three of them turned to find Beca patiently waiting for an explanation with what was happening. St. Peter cleared his throat before he address her once again.

* * *

"You have the time of one year, Beca Mitchell. One year to find what it means to _live_. To affect other's lives and be affected by it. To see the beauty of this world. If you fail to realize what was waiting right in front of you all along, then you will fail the task. If not, then you pass, and you shall be granted with a reward." Beca heard St. Peter say once the deliberation had finished.

"Again, Beca, you have a year." Luke then added to emphasize that she wouldn't be given any extensions. A year is all she gets and that's it. That's all.

"A year to do what exactly?" she asked, still not clear on what she needed to do.

"It wouldn't matter if we explained it. You have a chance to relive a moment of your life and learn what you need to learn." St. Peter then said

"But what do I need to learn?" Beca asked desperately, not wanting to mess this up.

But St. Peter didn't give her any answers. Instead he raised his hand and Beca felt a piercing pain on her right arm. Beca frantically looked for the source of it but saw nothing.

She looked back, her frustrations about the vagueness of whatever wisdom they were all trying to impart to her.

But nothing. St. Peter was all business as usual as he took his gavel from his podium.

"Your trial starts now." he said with a booming voice as the gavel hit the sound block. The finality of what lies ahead sinking in.

There were a million questions forming in Beca's head all in that second, wanting to know more.

Wanting to _understand_ more.

But before she could even speak a word of protest or ask any questions she found herself waking up with a jolt, her old worn out comforters hanging off the edge of the full size bed she had in her off campus studio apartment.

The air conditioning in the room kept everything reasonably cool, but the small space that she had managed to keep for four years filled her vision after what felt like a lifetime ago.

Beca felt for her phone, the old model she had kept – technically it was one of the most recent ones back in college – and saw the time and date.

And in that instant Beca realized she was back for her senior year in Barden.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, hear me out here, I know how this story starts but trust me when I say I'm a sucker for happy endings and while the premise is rather shrouded in tragedy, I swear in all that's good in the world that I want this to be more light and fluffy (like my Christmas fic). 
> 
> Bear with me folks. This fic is about the usual length per chapter as my older ones and about as many chapters (~25).
> 
> PS: Guess who the reapers are? 0:3


	2. As the Clock Strikes Twelve

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thanks for the response so far! Quick notes to clarify things: 1) Beca in chapter 1 died, they can't place her anywhere because they can't judge her, so now she has to relive a year in her life to pass her 'trial' – but more on that later as the whole thing will be touched upon by some characters – and 2) no hospital scenes with how the Bellas took Beca's death in chapter 1 because in that timeline, Beca never made friends with the Bellas, she never joined them, and all their interactions were indirect and passing, something will happen towards the end of the fic though that would sort of be like that but no hospital scene per se.

Beca was pacing around her apartment for a good half hour after that. She peered outside her window, checked her school email and password to see if it was still working. She opened her old laptop, well technically it was still her most recent laptop, to look up the date and time a few good times before doing the same thing from her desktop.

Because there was no way that she essentially time-travelled, right? Was it even time-traveling to begin with?

But all of the answers she found led to the same conclusion. She was back at Barden. Back for her senior year of college.

And just like that, the years of success Beca had lived, the fire that had led her to the gates, it all started to feel like a distant dream.

Hence the pacing.

Beca needed to piece together what was going on from what she knew. But seriously, what does she know so far?

She died. That was first.

Luke was a freaking guardian angel, along with the tall brunette, and she was talking to St. Peter.

Apparently heaven and hell were real.

And now she's been given a test, a trial.

That she has no freaking clue about!

Beca took in a deep breath. _Just relax, Mitchell._ she thought to herself as her brain tried to make any sense with what was going on.

But neighbors were noisy, no doubt new people were moving in, her phone kept ringing, and just nothing would make sense.

She needed to take a break and break away from all the nonsense distractions.

Beca reached for her phone and turned it off. Jesse had been calling her, leaving a message to not forget about dinner tonight. It was their thing. Jesse Swanson had been the one friend that Beca had throughout college, she supposed his other best bud magician nerd of a friend, Benji, was too. It was hard not to become friends with Jesse, especially with the mundane world of being a radio intern in charge of stacking CDs for the most part of the year. Jesse had been an intern too and they pretty much had the same schedule at the station for both semesters so talking had become unavoidable. Their friendship was rocky at first, with Jesse constantly trying to pursue her, but around sophomore year of college, they settled more into their roles of best friends, Jesse understanding that it was never going to happen.

Well, for the most part.

He still joked about getting together from time to time.

Beca decided to take a walk to clear her mind. She knew what Jesse was calling about anyways, and no she won't forget their tradition of going to the best pizza place on campus at the start of every semester.

But for now, she really needed a moment of quiet. Some alone time with herself to figure out what was going on.

It was the Saturday before the first week of classes. People were all busy with moving back in to their campus dorms, or settling in their new apartments. Beca's had her studio apartment since her sophomore year, after her disastrous attempt of having a roommate and living in one of the dorms, so there was never really a fuss about moving in and out. She's been on campus mostly during the summers too, working at the radio station for the most part. She even worked at the old record store during one of those summers where he met the guy who told her about the internship that Beca had applied to.

A part of Beca knew she'll get the internship, or that she got the internship at least in the reality she knew, but she could still feel the jitters, the anticipation building from it. She'll hear back in a couple of days if she still gets it for sure, that is, if all of what was happening right now would still be real in a couple of days.

It's hard to reconcile things from what she knew had happened in her life and what she things were just about to happen.

One thing for sure was that Beca didn't realize that walking around the Barden campus would hit her with nostalgia. Those long nights at the radio station and the longer walks home with nothing but her music to keep her company. The campus barely looked like it changed – _of course it barely changed from your perspective Mitchell, you're back to the last year you saw this place_ – and Beca was already half expecting her dad will pop up at the corner somewhere with her usual lectures of living a little, experience college life, give a bit more effort into it.

_Well pops, looks like I'd have to heed you advice._

Beca continued her walk for the rest of the afternoon, exploring the campus grounds just like she did back during her freshman year. She avoided the activities fair for now, and the whole welcoming activities near the admissions building, and stuck close by the main library, the radio station, and the music building.

Everything felt like how it used to be, more and more as she walked around, that Beca considered that maybe, since everything felt so real and true that it was. She was really back at Barden.

And maybe this wasn't a dream. Maybe the dream was everything she though she knew before she woke up.

Maybe she was just thinking of all she wanted to achieve and dreaming about them, and perhaps her mind was just too tired when she started dreaming about heaven, hell, and Luke being an angel.

An hour before the time she knew she should meet Jesse, she started making her way down to Main St., taking the same path she usually took on her way there.

Beca really wasn't expecting much of anything but she supposed she should've. She saw a bunch of guys skateboarding near the arts building and remembered that one kid would end up falling down the steps and grazing his knees.

But that was from that incredibly long dream she had.

A part of her felt like she should warn the guy but how would she explain that she suddenly gave the knowledge of the event and…

_Oh, there he goes…_ Beca noted to herself when she suddenly realized that she _knew_.

She knew what was going to happen.

So how could it have been a dream?

Beca didn't linger too long after that and ran towards the pizza place where Jesse was already waiting for her.

She figured, if anyone would willingly listen to her and not laugh at what was going on, it would be him.

* * *

"I don't know Beca." Jesse said still unconvinced.

The tale was quite imaginative, and highly detailed in fact, that Jesse felt like he should believe her. Because how could Beca even come up with something like that? Something straight out of the books and movies?

"I'm telling you Jess, I'm not kidding. I don't know, I just don't know what to think about it!" Beca exclaimed as she snatched yet another slice of pizza, her fourth one in fact, and started munching on it.

Jesse sighed. Beca was a pretty bad liar on most days, at least to people she cared about and Jesse would like to think that Beca cared about him even for a little bit. But it was all too strange.

Nevertheless, of it were real, it was Jesse's duty to help his best friend out. And since he was Beca's best friend, he had to believe her. Be there for her.

"Maybe your trial is some sort of unfinished business? Something you totally missed out on? Oh! Maybe it's…"

"It's not dating you Jesse." Beca adamantly replied.

"Well, I wasn't going to say that." Jesse replied. "You've made that clear. I was saying, maybe it's you not meeting your special someone? Or maybe you missed out on meeting people who would end up being central parts of your life? Maybe you were supposed to do something but you didn't?"

"Like what?" Beca asked.

"I don't know." Jesse truthfully replied. "Finish the _El Gigante_ burrito at the Mexican place nearby and have your picture on the wall, maybe?"

"I'm not doing that, Jess, you puked trying to do just that last year." Beca pointed out.

Which was true.

But more on the point, Jesse kept trying to wrack his brain for something, anything.

Because the answer should be obvious. Right?

"Okay, how about figuring out if this was a dream or not in the first place?" Jesse then offered. "What if this was your subconscious telling you that you should go out and live a little, you know? Not have any regrets?"

"Go on." Beca replied, taking a huge bite out of her pizza.

"What if, none of it happened? What if this is a warning? Like, what if this is all just your own way of telling yourself that you're afraid of having any regrets and that you should live your life to the fullest or something?" Jesse went on to say.

Because that sort of made sense.

Beca stopped for a moment to listen and take in all that he had to say. "Maybe." Beca then replied.

"I mean, you said it yourself Beca. This all feels real. And I feel real, to myself at least. So maybe this is real. Maybe this is your own way of wanting to make sure you make the most out of your senior year. Think about it? Or at least don't think too much about it and enjoy. Maybe that's the truth you're supposed to find in all of this?"

"Yeah, well what about me knowing about skater boy?" Beca then asked.

Jesse shrugged. "Maybe you could just tell from how he was skating that he might fall. People get inklings like that. Like, sometimes when we watch basketball games at the Treble house, and someone goes for a shot, some of the guys could tell if the ball would go in the basket or not before it does from how the player shoots. So maybe it was just kind of like that? Skater boy could have been already wobbling and you noticed that he didn't have his balance without really noticing it and then everything just happened so fast."

"I suppose that could be true." Beca then said as she sighed.

"Unless you're actually psychic and you're not telling me…" Jesse then teased sensing that Beca was starting to relax about the whole thing. "Maybe you can help me win the lottery, Becs?"

"Fat chance." Beca then replied and the matter was buried for good.

Or so Jesse thought.

* * *

Beca slumped down her bed, extremely full and tired from all the thinking she's done that day. She did manage to get away from Jesse's request of a double feature after dinner for her moviecation by agreeing with just one.

Jesse relented, thankfully, and while she did have to sit through most of the movie they ended up just talking and theorizing about Beca's weirdly realistic dream some more, making fun of it than really getting to the bottom of things.

Because how could it have possibly been true? Maybe seeing Luke as an angel was the indicator that it wasn't?

And perhaps, Jesse was right. She was just stressing all about everything. Maybe all of it was just a dream, her subconscious trying to remind her to live a little before college ends and she gets thrown into the real world once and for all.

Finally trying to make her dream into reality and stuff.

_Yeah_ , _maybe that's it_. Beca thought to herself as tired eyes started to flutter.

Beca made herself more comfortable checking her phone one last time before setting it aside for the night, it was barely a minute before midnight.

But just as Beca closed her eyes, yearning for a peaceful night's sleep, she felt a searing pain on her right arm. Immediately, Beca got up and searched for the source of the burning sensation. She didn't have to search long. Her right arm was blowing light blue, twelve pairs of ribbons circling down the length of her arm. At the middle of each was a number in Roman numerals, most of them corresponded to the number thirty, some thirty one, and then there was one that was only twenty eight.

The current ribbon that was burning hotter than the rest were split into two, and was sitting in the middle of all the ribbons. The upper half was an unmoving number of 'XIV' while the number below it changed from 'XVII' to 'XVI'.

That was when Beca realized that the ribbons corresponded to the months of a year, each number in the middle was the number of days in a month and August was split into two because it was the month they were in and it was already currently in the middle of August.

The whole thing glowed a brighter blue before disappearing once more, barely leaving a mark on Beca's skin.

It was a timer.

Her arm bore of a timer for a whole year.

That's when Beca realized that everything – whether or not they made sense – everything was real.

And she only had a year to figure out what she needed to do to pass her test.


	3. A Little Help From Her Friends

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! It's been a while. I got busy with work and stuff and I'm still juggling quite a few thing so I'll try my best to keep updating this fic whenever I can. I'm currently finishing up my Bechloe Ouran AU called 'Barden High School Host Club' and after that I'll be working on finishing the 'Your Lie in April' AU. If you're following those stories, be sure to expect at least 2 updates per week. But yeah, I promise I'm back and hopefully will soon get back into the swing of things with regular updates.
> 
> For now, here is chapter three featuring Beca's conundrum and the arrival of her guardian angel ;) The Bellas will be featured in the next chapter, I promise!

To say that Beca was freaking out would be an understatement.

Because no, Beca was not freaking out.

She was high-key panicking and all buzzed up from the three pots of coffee she consumed from midnight until this morning. Jesse, bless his heart, was about to go to the student stores with her as originally planned to pick up the books they were renting for the semester. Upon seeing Beca jittery he decided to ask his other best bud for a favor instead and pick the books up while ordering a few boxes of pizza and getting to the root cause of the problem.

The problem being Beca's glowing timer on her arm. The one that kicked in a good eleven and a half hours ago before disappearing a full minute after showing its presence. Her arm was now bare, no sign of the strange mystical thing that was there in the first place so of course Beca was having the time of her life explaining this to Jesse with no proof whatsoever.

"I swear Jess, I'm not crazy!" Beca frantically pleaded because no, she can't do this. She can't figure this out alone. She died the first time she did things her way and without listening to anyone only to find out that she can't be placed  _anywhere_  in the afterlife because she can't be judged because she has not lived.

What kind of person would even get themselves in this kind of predicament?

_You Mitchell, you're the perfect poor fool to find yourself in this predicament._ Beca thought to herself, biting into her seventh slice of pizza.

"I'm not saying I don't believe you Becs, it's just a little hard to."Jesse sighed. He looked like he was trying to follow everything Beca was saying but it was a little more difficult to do so when Beca was very much adamant about not giving him too much info on what she remembered about the future… or possible future…

Beca wasn't even sure if the memories she had still meant anything. Surely they'll start changing by the time her trials are over. She didn't know the answer. Right now all she knew was that she was tired and grumpy for having to thing about this whole thing the whole night, and frustrated too for not knowing what will happen next.

Because what if she does dare to live? What if she forms attachments she never wanted? What if something happens, something comes her way that she doesn't ever want to let go? She was ready to accept death, she really was, but will she be able to when this was all over? She's supposed to re-live a year in her life and learn some vague something that would define to her what  _living_  was all about, what her life was all meant for.

But what if she reaches the end and she  _does_  get the answers she want? Would she still be able to accept her Fate?

Or what if she fails?

Of all the few things Beca knew were true she knew she was afraid. What it exactly it was that she was afraid of wasn't well defined to her though. Death or life? Failure or succeeding? Punishment?

Heaven or hell?

Because  _that_  was a very scary thought she should be considering now.

"How about this," Jesse quickly started to say after Beca nearly dropped her slice, the questions and thoughts of the past sleepless night haunting her in daylight. "I'll stay over, sleep on your couch. I'll be here until the timer goes off again and changes the number you said was there. I'll stay with you, and we'll figure out if this is a dream or not. Together. Because Beca, if this is serious… I don't know what part I'll play, or if I even have a part at all, but you're my best friend and I'll always have your back."

Beca simply nodded not knowing what else to say.

Because what else is there to say in the first place?

Her little predicament is in the extreme side of  _insane_.

Beca wasn't sure if Jesse believed her or not, if that was why he was staying – to prove to Beca she's just dreaming or maybe prove to himself that Beca was indeed not crazy – but she was thankful for it. Not that she would ever admit it out loud.

They decided to stay in for the night, Jesse calling Benji to swing by and drop her books and maybe bring his PlayStation over so they could entertain themselves as they waited for midnight. Jesse kept pushing about watching all kinds of movies to get Beca's thoughts out of her  _borrowed time_  situation and Beca relented to letting  _him_  watch movies while she made some mixes.

If there was anything that could get her to clear her head then it would be mixes.

But she had to give up on that plan barely half an hour into their wait, distract, and not think about anything related to the whole one year thing when Jesse couldn't help but be nosy.

Thankfully that was when Benji arrived, with Chinese food too, and they started playing some horror survival game to pass the time.

Beca was busy trying to solve some puzzle so they could get through the next stage when Benji finally asked the question that burst her happy bubble, the one that prevented her from stressing out about the whole trial thing.

"Well, Beca may or may not have had a dream that she lived this life of a successful music producer, reaching her dreams and all, only to die and be sent to re-live a year of her life because St. Peter can't judge her since in that reality she hadn't  _lived_. And now, Beca thinks she's re-living that year and apparently there was this thing around midnight where her arms glowed blue and there was some weird timer to remind her of how long she has left. What she does in this borrowed time will decide her Fate, I think." Jesse said nonchalantly as he sank his teeth into the spicy pork dish that Benji got him.

Beca grumbled, giving Benji a side-eye to see his reaction. She was afraid that he'll start thinking she was crazy. Beca liked Benji, and thanks to him being best friends with Jesse, he's sort of kinda friends with him too. She didn't care, of course, if Benji thought she was, a lot of people already thought a dozen different things about her and she didn't care, she never cared.

At least that's what she told herself.

But Benji didn't look at Beca like she was crazy, no. His glance at her with wide eyes, a look of realization setting in and simply hummed and nodded. "Wow… tough predicament." Benji mumbled as he kept nodding before standing up from the lounge and stretching. "Well, look at the time, I remember I have this, uh, this thing that I have to do, right. Yeah. So, um, gotta go now. You keep the console and just keep playing, return it whenever, no biggie really, and uh, I'm gonna bounce." he announced.

Suspicious reaction well noted, Beca shoved the controller to Jesse and excused herself. "I'll walk you down. I think it's about time I check my mailbox anyways."

"Uh… you really don't have to Beca, besides, it's…" Benji tried stammering out as an excuse.

"Oh, no, no. I should really step up my hosting skills anyways. Let me walk you out, make sure you don't trip on your way to the parking lot." Beca then said, walking up to Benji and ushering him out of the apartment. "Be back in a sec Jess."

"Sure, sure." Jesse mumbled, barely having his reply heard as Beca hurriedly shut the door behind her.

"So, lovely weather we're having out." Benji then said as soon as they stepped out, trying to make small talk and Beca simply glared back.

"You know something," she stated more than asked and before Benji tried to make some crappy excuse Beca cut him off. "You're going to tell me what you know, do you understand Benjamin Applebaum, if that's even your real name." she stated, jabbing him with a finger on his chest. "What do you know?"

"Honestly, Beca, I don't…" Benji tried to excuse himself.

"Cut the crap and tell me. I'm scared Benji," Beca said with all honesty, because she really was. There was such a thing as the fear of the unknown, it makes people do stupid things. Well, this fear she has, it's the fear of  _the_ unknown. Like the ultimate one, not just a fear of something she can't understand. It's a fear to her life, her dream, everything…

Benji took a deep breath. "I'm not supposed to tell you anything… I'm going to get in trouble for this…" he started to say and suddenly things clicked in Beca's mind.

Benji's  _always_  there in all of Jesse's lowest points. He was there when he needed him the most, when he needed a listening ear to give sound advice. He was always willing to help, lend a hand or two… if Beca was being honest, she half-assumed that maybe he was just in love with him but now it kind of sort of makes sense… Even Luke said he had some charge. He was an undercover guardian angel.

"You're Jesse's guardian angel." she whispered as she understood and Benji nodded.

"The trial thing is real Beca, you're not going crazy." Benji sighed, providing her an answer.

"But how? I mean, you're like us. Simply like us with the PlayStation and the food allergies and all…" Beca trailed on.

Benji simply shrugged. "We assume human identities. At some point our charges, well, they start to enter the toughest hurdles of their lives. Sometimes it happens earlier or other in the later parts of our lives. It's like, we're undercover agents until the time that our charges won't need us anymore. We come and go in their lives as we are needed. College, in particular, is this major part in a lot of people's lives where they either make it or break it. That's why I'm here, to make sure Jesse doesn't lose his way and try to keep him on the right path. Ever heard of the right ear-angel, left ear-devil thing? That's real. We need to fight against those kinds of enemies to keep things balanced."

"Then, then why…" Beca went on, trying to piece things together.

"Have you not met yours? Well, you were,  _are_ , kind of aloof. You've always got your walls up. I think you just never let them near you or help you out." Benji explained. "I didn't want to say anything in front of Jesse, I didn't want him to know about me. And I'm  _so_  not allowed to help you out, that's for  _your_ guardian angel to do. Us interfering with other's charges is a major no, no. But I'm letting Jesse stay, and if you need just someone to talk to, I'm here. You need a friend Beca, no one can weather out life alone. Please don't tell Jesse though."

Beca simply nodded and muttered "Thanks." She watched as Benji left and she took the long way back to her apartment, deep I her thoughts.

Maybe Benji had a point. She can't live through life alone, if anything she can't go through this year all by herself.

* * *

Jesse was close to nodding off for the third time. He only stopped himself because he realized that he had a box of leftover pizza on his lap with a dipping sauce and didn't want to get any of it anywhere. Beca, on the other hand, had dozed off, the control barely in her hands as she was obsessively trying to cram in all of their goodies in some briefcase for their inventory in the game.

Well, at least it's on that screen, it would have been tough if Beca went down for the count in the middle of a navigating through some haunted castle and enemies come up to murder them.

Jesse decided to make himself useful and clear up a few things on her coffee table and possibly make some coffee to stay awake too. He kept his eye on the clock by the kitchen counter, just two more minutes and they could possibly resolve this matter.

Does Jesse believe Beca? Well, a part of him always will. But one has to admit, Beca's story was a little off the rockers.

But what if it was true? What could it mean? Jesse wasn't even sure.

He was hanging by the kitchen counter, waiting for the coffee to be done when it happened. Beca screamed just before she fell onto the floor, a glowing blue light appearing on her arm. Jesse frantically rushed towards her only to find the blue ribbons, the timer, and a very frightened Beca watching as her timer goes down by another day.

And then it was gone. The light, the glowing mystical tattoo, everything. He crouched down and looked at Beca just in time as she turned to face him with a set look on her face.

_Believe me now?_ Beca silently dared to ask, or at least, that's what Jesse got.

And he did. Oh, he most definitely did.

Which meant that in a year… well, who knows what happens? All that Jesse knew was that he would be there to help her out with anything. He'll do anything he can for Beca.

* * *

Emily was a little annoyed that it took her two days to get to where she needed to be. If anyone said that politics and paperwork was not a thing up where she's at, well, they're wrong.

Especially about the paperwork, because the mountain of forms she needed to fill-up took a while to finish and get processed.

But now, now she's at Barden University. A flurry of students surrounding her, trying to get from one place to another as the activity fair was in full swing.

Emily turned around, taking it all in, when she saw a face she knew could help her get to where she wants. Dark hair, kind look on his face, and leading a pack of Trebles through the crowd gathered in the auditorium, she could be mistaken but she would bet her halo that she just spotted Jesse Swanson, Beca's best friend.

Emily took a deep breath. "You got this Ems," she whispered to herself. She won't fail her charge, no. She'll do everything she can to help Beca pass this trial.

But for now, it was time to get started.


	4. Beca's Guardian Angel

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the constant hiatus, I do apologize. I've been busy with work and the mental exhaustion from grad school is keeping me away from writing but I do promise I'll get back into things. That is, I'm slowly getting back into things ;) For sure once we hit chapter 10, I'll keep updates with this fic on the regular, and hopefully it would be back to my usual update speeds. I'm challenging myself to finish a different fic by Thanksgiving weekend and another by Christmas… let's see if I wrap this up before New Year's?
> 
> For now, here's chapter 4 featuring Emily Junk, an ambush to get on the right path, Chloe and Beca finally sharing a scene (although it's brief)! More Bechloe interactions will come, I'm just getting the characters together now…
> 
> I don't own pitch perfect.

"No." Beca had said almost in a daze as she stared at her. "Dude, just no." she then repeated. Emily believed that she was talking to Jesse for the most part of it –  _or perhaps to herself? –_  as she took in the information she was given. Information in the form of Emily Junk, the angel she met in heaven, currently explaining that good ol' uncle Pete was there to monitor her progress for her trial.

"It's kinda how it's supposed to be Beca." Emily replied as the two of them sat under the shade of a tree at the quad during lunch. Jesse looked at the two of them curiously before his eyes widened and fully grasped the situation.

"Wait a minute…" Jesse muttered. "Wait, wait, oh my gosh! You, you're, this part of the…" he started to ramble on as realization dawned upon him. Beca grunted and effectively shushed him as Emily also caught on to what Jesse knew that he wasn't supposed to know.

"You told him?!" she then exclaimed. Rule one was to keep this whole thing between them, no outsiders get dragged into things. She already figured that one or two people might end up finding things out eventually and Emily was prepared for that.

She was not, however, prepared to handle that said predicament rather soon as she made the wrong assumption that Beca closed-off-from-the-rest-of-the-world Mitchell would keep this to herself. She was clearly wrong about that.

Although Emily decided to take comfort in the fact that Beca would seek out a friend to deal with the troubling information she would undoubtedly have a hard time to process alone. To figure out what her trial is, to truly live and be alive, to find your purpose in life. In a way, this was also why senior year was what she argued for in deciding when to send Beca back. Freshman Beca would have been more closed off, senior Beca had been worn down by Jesse a little, they would have established a good enough relationship where they could talk about the strangest of things. That and Jesse would have by then accepted his fate as the faithful Friend A and he can focus on helping her.

So, perhaps, they were taking a step in the right direction after all?

Emily sighed. "Well, I don't suppose it hurts that you know since you're not my charge." Emily then replied as she tried to calm down a bit and focus on the important first step they needed to take.

Jesse then nodded as if seeing Emily's point. "I'm just glad you're here to help us. It sucks, like by a lot, to know what Beca needs to do in a year… to know… you know what, none of the heavy stuff right now. You're here to make sure Beca's heading to a better place. Let's focus on that. So, what's the plan?"

"Um, can you guys not talk among yourselves about me when I'm literally sitting between the two of you." Beca then interjected, taking control of the conversation. "You, stop getting him on board with all of this and talking like all of this happening here right now is normal." she went on, addressing Emily before turning to Jesse. "And you, stop talking to her like you've know her forever."

"I mean, I'm just befriending the only ally we have here." Jesse replied.

Beca looked like she was about to say something in response but Emily beat her to the punch. "Look, Beca, I'm sure you know by now that you have a timer here. I'm just here to make sure you go through this fairly, to sort of help you out with subtle nudges and hints, and to make sure you're safe."

"Safe from what?" Beca immediately asked.

_Whoops_.

"I… I mean… you know… make sure you don't get yourself in an accident that will endanger your life before your trial ends… stuff like that, yeah." Emily then quickly gave as a response because one, she wasn't even supposed to say that, and two, she really most definitely hoped she doesn't have to deal with  _them_  her with her first charge ever.

"Sure." Beca replied, sounding rather skeptical. Lucky for Emily, Jesse immediately jumped in with his theories of what Beca might have to do. For the most part Emily simply listened and smiled and shrugged along. She really cannot inform any of them about much of the specifics.

The day dragged on after that, with Emily constantly trying to get Beca to where she needed to be. However, the grumpy DJ did have her share of responsibilities that she needed to get done. After getting annoyed with Emily trailing her around, Beca promised to meet her up again later in the afternoon at her apartment.

Emily would protests but she figured Beca would need space to process the things that just kept popping up for her. The predicament they were in was already the definition of an out of the ordinary special kind of circumstance that she really can't blame her. Beca's mind was still catching up to what's actually happening around her. It looked like she already acknowledge and accepted it, which was good, but Emily does understand just how overwhelming everything must be.

Besides, she figured it was her time to do some digging and preparation.

She of course had her own version of a mission briefing before descending and assuming the human identity of Emily Junk. She decided to adopt one of the last names of a different guardian angel in disguise at Barden in the past to help establish her identity and possible connections. What she needed to do, however, was confirm the information they have gathered and made sure that nothing has changed from what should be with Beca's re-emersion to her past self.

Or at least, to what had been during the past that Beca was reliving now.

And not what was totally intended to happen by the forces above.

After the entirety of the afternoon was spent ensuring that everything was in place for things to happen naturally – her role here, after all, included setting things up to help Beca along and letting her decide what happens next once granted with the options she was given – Emily found herself promptly waiting for Beca in front of her apartment.

Beca gave her a wary look, clearly indicating how cautious she was acting around Emily. "You do know you can relax around me, right?"

"Yeah, but how do I know you're not her to tempt and confuse me? Draw out my inner darkness or something and then judge me?"

"Not what  _we_  do. Like I said before, I'm here to help you Beca. I do want you to get the best out of this experience, the best outcome too." Emily then said as she trailed after her once more, making their way to inside Beca's apartment. "Which is why we're totally gonna have you change into something a little less lazy alt-girl and more college senior who has an amazing future ahead of her."

"My future's rather bleak, wouldn't you say? We've already established I'm gonna die in five years." Beca then replied with a hint of sadness.

Emily took a deep breath, a little disappointed at how Beca's go to choice was grim realism. "You've been given a year Beca, you can either take this as a blessing or a curse, make the most out of this opportunity or just give up if that's what you really want."

"I am going to do that. I have an amazing internship that starts soon. I know I did well the first time around, but I figure maybe I can do better and –"

"I'm stopping you there right now." Emily then said with a sigh. "I can't tell you why you're reliving this exact year but I can tell you you're not given this chance just to go through the same mundane rituals you did before."

"Okay then, what should I do oh great and knowing guardian angel of mine?" Beca then sarcastically asked.

"Well first, like I said, go dress to impress. That's all I'm telling you." Emily then replied.

Beca simply stood in response, eying Emily suspiciously. At first Emily thought she might actually cave and tell her the rest but she fought hard to stand her ground. If she spilled the plan, Beca would say no and argue why it was a terrible plan and Emily didn't really want to waste any time on that. Emily also didn't want to let slip any reason that could influence Beca's decisions, so there was reason number two. Beca had to make her own decisions, she's only her to make sure she sees the options. So, Emily had to try. She was sure she wasn't entirely convincing as she mustered the best stern look she could have but Beca nevertheless relented to it.

Score one for Emily the hopeful self-proclaimed best guardian angel out there.

Beca, for her part, did her best to resist. She seemed grateful for the help, or at least she did express her gratitude just after Emily gave her approval for her look, but she most definitely wasn't entirely too trusting either. It was clear to Emily Beca didn't want to go to "the bad place", but old habits are hard to break and Beca was still a little bit lost as to what was the point in all of this.

And rightfully frustrated. Emily can't really blame her for that.

She's been asking her all day long what she needed to do, what her trial was, and all Emily could do was give sage advices and the vague non-explanations that comes with her job.

She really can't tell her anything, else she would fall from grace.

Of course it was natural to want the best for their charge, but to directly influence their lives to manipulate certain outcomes was a big no, no. It would challenge their free will. And at the end of it, whether Beca wants to live their life to the fullest or not was up to her. Emily could only do so much to help her. She can't force Beca to make the decisions Emily would hope she would make.

Otherwise, she won't learn anything from this.

Otherwise, she won't embrace her life and truly  _live_  it.

Beca kept asking her where they were going as they made their way through campus, the sun setting just behind them. "Please don't tell me we're going to a party. I don't want to go to a party. Or worse, not a blind date, please don't tell me this is what it is."

Emily chuckled and shook her head. "Not that Beca. You need to understand, the lives people live affect others too, in one way, shape, or form. Some people tend to be more influential in the sense that the things they do have greater ripple effects.

"Okay, so, are you saying I'm one of those people?" Beca then asked sounding confused.

"I'm saying you can't live a life of isolation and I'm pointing you to the right direction." Emily then replied. "Also, do know that the less you think about the technicalities of this, the better it would be for you. Think about the whole situation as a long drive to some destination. If all you think about is how you'll drive there, which roads to take and which stops you want to hit at a specified time point, where to eat, when the ideal time to stop is, then you'll end up annoyed and tired and miserable when you reach the destination. You won't enjoy it, you'll just be frustrated you didn't get to do everything as planned because of things that are entirely out of your hands.

"And the thing that is within your control? You end up letting slip away if you focus too much on the destination. Life's a journey Beca, a journey not meant to be on a tight schedule – ironic, I know, since you kind of are right now but that's beside the point. You're meant to enjoy the ride, stop and smell the roses, take pictures and stuff. Pay attention to the detours, the journey itself, because otherwise you'll miss what's right in front of you."

Beca simply nodded as she let that sink in. "Okay, but where on earth are we going?" she then asked, sounding a little less frustrated and wary than before. Emily would like to think she's finally getting through to her. That she was making progress herself.

Still, Emily chose not to give a reply to that. Instead she cheerfully dragged Beca across the main lawn towards their destination.

She figured the less time she had to think about things, the less she would freak out about it/

It was, after all, time to right the first of the many wrongs this life had taken.

Step one was underway.

It was time to join the Barden Bellas.

* * *

 

The girls had all been gathered in the living room of the Bellas house. They were still reeling from the latest of their misfortunes, including the last batch of death threats that Amy got in the mail after the little incident they had when they started to notice the ruckus coming from the outside.

Amy had volunteered to go get the door as Chloe settle in on the couch. The Bellas had been struggling a few years ago during her first senior year. It was only through some luck and accidental discovery of a midnight DJ segment at the school's radio station that got them through that year. It was like a reinvigoration of sort, a revival. They've been stuck in some old school rut when all of a sudden, during a long drawn out midnight discussion with Aubrey, her best friend and co-captain back then, that they accidentally heard a mash up on the radio that inspired them to greatness. Since then, the Bellas had been constantly changing their sound, trying to find their groove as they tried and successfully repeated the success they had found. Aubrey had left and Stacie, one of their new recruits back then, had replaced her role of co-captain of the Bellas. Chloe stayed behind, not entirely certain of what her next steps would be back then.

She still didn't. The only thing she was sure of was that she loved being a Bella, it was what made sense in her life the most. As if the music was calling out to her, trying to pull her into the right direction or something, Chloe's not really sure.

What she's sure of was that the Bellas might face their end, and they would need a miracle to get back the glory they had lost.

As it turns out, someone was listening to Chloe's prayers as a miracle came to them that night in the form of a tall young bubbly girl and a very grumpy but rather cute shorter brunette who was protesting under her breath as she stood behind her friend.

Chloe could hear the persistent arguments coming from the girl who called herself Emily as Amy repeatedly denied them a chance to join the Bellas, not that the adorable alt-girl Chloe swore she had seen around before was keen on joining like Emily was. Chloe was tempted to let them in and talk to them, explain the situation properly to them so they could understand, however, the fact that they were not allowed to accept new members that year still stung. With no one to inherit the legacy of the current Barden Bellas, it didn't matter if they won the World championships for acapella singing, something no American team had done before, they were still going to perish soon from the halls of Barden University.

"My mom was a Bella!" Emily then said out loud as Amy tried her best to shut the door once again.

"What did you say your name again was?" Chloe then said, finally getting up to approach their guests still fighting off Amy's attempts on closing the door on them.

"Junk. My name's Emily Junk." the girl replied with a huge grin.

And upon recognizing the name, Chloe did a complete one eight. They would get in trouble for this, she was sure, but then again Chloe was also sure that either she or Stacie could loophole their way out of it. Besides, Emily and her cute grumpy friend were the ones who sought them out and insisted on joining.

They did something sort of an impromptu audition in the living room with all the members gathered. Emily's enthusiasm and excitement shone through as she sang a song she said she wrote while the other girl who begrudgingly said her name was Beca awkwardly stood there in silence.

"Well, you at least can sing and knowing Chloe, she'll rig our voting process to let you in. But what about shorty over there?" Cynthia Rose asked.

"Oh, um, I don't sing." Beca immediately replied.

"Seems strange you'd want to join the Bellas if you don't sing." Amy then noted.

And that's when things clicked in Chloe's head. She had seen her before! She was the girl Aubrey definitely did not like during the activities fair of their senior year. The same girl Chloe tried to convince but said she didn't really sing.

Now that she thought about it, she'd seen her more than that one time. She was sure she hung out with Luke sometimes and his radio station pals, and then there was that one time at a record store before…

…but it was only now that Chloe knew her name.

Beca Mitchell.

"Oh, but she's a musical genius!" Emily then exclaimed before Beca could say anything. "She's a DJ at the campus radio who does a lot of mixes."

"Wait, you don't happen to be the DJ responsible for the 'Just a Dream'/'Just the Way You Are' mashup, were you?" Jessica then asked, awe clear in her tone.

After all, it was the mix that got Chloe and Aubrey to agree on a plan back then. It was the song on the radio that changed things up for the Bellas.

"Oh yeah, I played that freshman year." Beca then mumbled before blushing a little as Jessica and Ashley squealed. "You guys heard that?"

"We do have ears and radios, and good taste in music too." Ashley then replied.

Cynthia Rose shook her head and chuckled. "You're kind of our unnamed unsung hero. Every time we're in a rut we listen to the midnight program and look for inspiration."

Chloe then smiled as the girl before blushed a bit more, looking thankful but shy. "Um, thanks I guess?" she then said just as Emily beamed.

Stacie, who had been sitting next to Chloe filing her nails, then grinned. "No need to guess what the verdict will be then, I'm sure Chloe's already made up her mind."

"We're not under a dictatorship, you know." Chloe then retorted.

"Yes, but we need someone with Beca's skills, singing or no singing." Stacie then replied.

"Do we still have to vote? I'm pretty sure everyone agrees they're both in." Flo then said.

"Congratulations you two, welcome to the Barden Bellas!" Chloe then cheerfully said as she stood up. "Now I suppose we need to figure out living arrangements. Lilly doesn't have a roommate so I guess that means one of you would be with her."

"Wait, wait, I didn't say –" Beca then tried to interject with panic but her protests were drowned out when Amy instantly rushed to pick her up in a bear hug.

"Oh, I pick the Shortstack as my roomie! Us awesome girls need to stay together!" Amy said.

"Put me down! Wait! Where are you taking me?!" Beca then exclaimed as Amy carried her over in a rush towards the front door. "Onward to our next road to victory! Let's go celebrate pitches!" was Amy's response before disappearing out into the night

Emily looked worried but Stacie calmed her down, placing an arm around the tall girl as she ushered her out. "Come on, we have new members, there's an aca-initiation party at the Trebles, we have some partying to do." she then stated.

Emily nodded and all the girls soon all rushed out with renewed vigor.

Looks like the Bellas were back in action.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> PS: I have a reason for not doing 'Cups' in this chapter. It will come up later on with the campfire scene so that's something to look forward to! I'll try to upload the next chapter by the end of the week.
> 
> UPNEXT: Beca and Chloe get up close and personal ;) Emily has her job cut out for her! And Amy and Stacie start noticing some of the weird things involving Emily and Beca's strange behaviors


	5. Let's Get Started with this Remix Business

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beca and Chloe have an encounter of the shower kind; Chloe finds herself amazed by Beca's little stint; Emily is starting to realize just how difficult being Beca's Guardian angel might prove to be

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thanks for still sticking through this fic. And thanks for all the support so far! Hope you enjoy this chapter.
> 
> So, here is chapter 5 with the forever staple shower scene, Emily really feeling the difficulties associated with getting Beca on the right path.
> 
> I don't own pitch perfect.

If there was anything that Beca learned the last few days, it was to just simply accept whatever this crazy re-do in life throws her way. Frustrating as her current predicament may be, she really didn't have much of a choice on anything. Emily insisted that this was what must happen and that Beca should trust her because she simply had her best interest at heart.

Sure, she had to endure Jesse's constant annoying grin at her whenever she was at the radio station every time he reminded her that she was now a Barden Bella.

And sure, she also had to figure out how to juggle her upcoming internship duties – which starts in a week – with her studies and her now new responsibility. On the plus side, she's lived through the study and internship part, which meant she could somehow predict what was going to happen next.

Or at least she hoped.

The downside is being a Barden Bella was going to drive her insane at best.

Hence the incredibly long hot shower she was taking in the private bathroom of her shared rooftop suite with Amy to relax.

The first week of Bella duties wasn't so bad. Emily kept bringing up the opinion that she was a musical genius, not that anyone else could forget that, and now she had Chloe breathing down her neck on some epic playlist. Not that it was too much of a pain, it was just that the redhead couldn't quite make up her mind on what the theme should be and she liked to very much try and invade Beca's space every chance she could to pick up that exact same conversation they were having.

Truth is, Beca wasn't sure if she hated it or not, Chloe's invasion of privacy. She just knew that it was doing something to her. What it was, she wasn't sure.

And Beca really didn't want to think about it for now.

Then there was Amy. She wasn't a terrible roommate. Sure, Beca's still annoyed that she had to break her lease and all to move to the Bellas house. Her dad – the one who insisted she move into the house with 'those nice acapella girls' – handled everything, because of course this made him happy.

Of course.

Really, so far, the only bad thing about Amy is her random comments – that Beca mostly tunes out – and her habit of pinching spare bills in Beca's jacket pockets – because who else would even dare try?

Beca hasn't really interacted with much of the Bellas yet, she was mostly keeping to herself, so she has yet to form an opinion on them.

Beca took a deep breath, clearing her mind as she let the warm water hitting her soothe the tension in her muscles. She turned around, and closed her eyes, doing her best not to think.

There was so much happening, so much going on.

Was helping the Bellas win the Worlds her test? She wasn't sure.

She really didn't know.

And she really didn't know what she should do with all these new people she was meeting. She had a year, and then that's it. The stupid timer that appeared every midnight was her awful reminder of it.

So what should she do? She doesn't want to leave attachments behind.

She really just wanted answers. Straightforward, nothing vague or cryptic.

But that isn't life.

Life is living days when you don't know why terrible things keep happening, or why you keep getting hurt.

Not until you've reached the end and had a time to reflect on it.

Which made it harder for Beca, because she most definitely did not want to fail this test.

But the first time she went through this lifetime, she didn't care much about it, she only looked forward, eyes kept on the forward.

So what exactly did she miss? What was she supposed to learn?

The quiet wasn't doing anything to clear her head so Beca started humming, focusing on the song itself so as to not get too wrapped up in everything.

Because maybe if she filled her head with music she could chase away the noise of her thoughts.

And for once, maybe she could focus on the now.

With humming seemingly working, Beca decided to softly sing the song. Amy doesn't usually get back until late, sometimes she doesn't actually get back until the next day, so she technically had her opportunity.

Because of course Beca Mitchell was maybe, kinda, definitely avoiding singing in front of the Bellas so that they don't find out that she does, in fact, sing and make her sing parts for their performances.

She's still really much against the idea of competitive acapella singing.

So maybe she got more into the whole thing, singing more confidently than she was seconds ago.

No one would hear her anyways, right?

Wrong.

As evidenced by her sudden yelp when the shower curtain was abruptly pulled open, Beca jumping towards one corner of the shower as she instinctively grabbed one edge of the shower curtain to cover herself with.

"You can sing!" Chloe said excitedly, almost breathlessly.

"Dude!" was all Beca could muster up as a complaint as she tried to catch up to the whole thing.

"Sorry, I was looking for Amy. She borrowed twenty from me earlier, and I'm ordering pizza and they only accept bills at the moment, some weird system malfunction thing, but then I heard you sing! And it's actually pretty amazing."

"Um, you do now, I'm still naked here." Beca pointed out.

But Chloe simply scoffed and ignored the comment. "That was Titanium, right? David Guetta?" she went on. "That song's my jam. My 'lady jam'."

And Beca pretty much wanted to ask what she meant when a though occurred to her… and nope…

_Nope, you're not going there Mitchell._

_Resist the urge… fight it… don't even dare think about those impure thoughts…_

Chloe made a comment about how the song really builds and Beca pretty much just wanted to switch the still running water of the shower to the coldest possible setting.

_Mitchell! Stop! Don't even think about it!_

So Beca cleared her thoughts and tried to focus on how the whole invasion of privacy to the next degree that was going on.

"Don't you think this weird at all?" Beca practically squeaked as she pulled as much of the shower curtains as she could to cover up her body from an amused Chloe who reached out past her to turn off the shower.

"No, should it be?" Chloe replied with a chuckle, looking at Beca like a kid on Christmas day.

Like she just opened the best present ever.

"Dude, I'm naked!" Beca protested. And on the days to come when she would think about the whole thing again, replay it in her head, her tone was very much firm and commanding.

Of course the truth was her voice was quaking, and she sounded very much confused on whether she was asking Chloe a question or pointing out the obvious fact.

"So?" was Chloe's reply, quirking an eyebrow at Beca's direction.

Beca visibly gulped – although she was convincing herself that she didn't – with her cheeks bright red as she bite her lip to stop her from rambling on all flustered with what would most likely be a nonsensical argument against Chloe.

Because by then – what with Chloe's close proximity to her and all – her brain pretty much turned into goo.

Chloe took a deep breath and sighed. "Fine." she softly said, her tone sounding kind and understanding.

And Beca hoped she was probably finally getting the level of sketchy inappropriateness of the whole thing was.

But alas, she was wrong.

Because she was met with a sly grin from Chloe when she went on. "Will it make you more comfortable if I'm naked too?" she asked, her voice barely a whisper.

And Beca would be lying if she said that the way Chloe had asked her didn't send shivers down her spine.

_Get a grip of yourself Mitchell._

"I mean I could join you." Chloe then suggested, acting as if she was about to take her clothes off, her fingers lingering over the hems of her shirt. "I've already gotten pretty wet myself."

If Beca thought her brain had turned to goo seconds ago, well, this time the goo most likely evaporated already.

What with her head overheating, barely even processing anything.

Sure, a tiny part of Beca knew Chloe meant that she's gotten wet with the running water from the shower earlier.

Oh… but those  _other_ thoughts in her head was fighting really hard.

_Mitchell… speak… do something!_

"No!" Beca managed to peep.

Chloe laughed and shook her head. "I'm not leaving until you sing Mitchell. Come on, sing with me?"

Beca looked very much hesitant but it would end the blessing of this torture – Beca wasn't thinking  _straight,_ clearly – then she had no choice.

Besides, she got the feeling that Chloe wasn't exactly someone who would take no for an answer.

Beca nodded as she tried to gather enough strength to look Chloe in the eye and sing with her.

Chloe beamed at her, realizing she's won.

And with all honesty, as soon as she looked into her eyes, Beca couldn't understand why the girl in front of her was giving her a heart attack but for some stupid reason she was happy about it.

So happy that despite being a flustered, fumbling, rambling mess – if her incoherent thoughts was anything to go by – that she was actually genuinely smiling.

_This girl might be death of me…_ she thought to herself as she took a deep breath to get herself to relax a bit.

… _ironic considering the circumstance, Mitchell, but she might really well be…_

And with that she sang.

With Chloe jumping in, singing with Beca, forming a wonderful harmonious melody.

And for the first time ever, Beca felt herself unable to breath.

But she didn't mind it.

Because of this inexplicable pull she felt along with it.

* * *

 

Chloe's head was in her hands, sitting on the piano stool. It's been a week since she's tried to get the Bellas in shape for the Worlds but all her battle plans and ideas kept falling short.

It was during days like these that she wished she still had her best friend, Aubrey, around. Her specialty, after all, was whipping the Bellas into shape. Chloe still couldn't quite figure out how they got Aubrey to agree to use modern songs for their second chance at Nationals when the two of them were still co-captains of the Bellas, he stubbornness and one-tracked mind had always been her downfall, but when she did, it was her strict regimen that got everyone ready in such a short time.

Not that Stacie was a bad co-captain the coming years, it was just different.

Like something was missing.

And Chloe couldn't quite figure out what it was.

Sure they've been dominating the ICCA the past couple of years, but that was due to half their hard work and their own ingenuity in a sense. The Bellas wanted to reinvent themselves over and over again each year, keeping their competition on their toes. But they never had their own sound, most of their performances were based on a video or a mix they hear on the campus radio once in a while.

Somehow Chloe knew they need that, they're own sound, if they're ever going to redeem themselves at the biggest stage they were competing in now, the World acapella championships.

And maybe, just maybe, she told herself she could let go now, she could move on.

One last Bellas performance that would top off the rest and she'd find the courage to leap into the real world, no more purposefully failing Russian Lit, no more delaying tactic.

She was ready to grow and move on.

Really, she wasn't sure what she was holding onto in the first place. Perhaps it was the fear of the unknown, perhaps it was the safety of having a family with the Bellas that had her stay, the feeling that something made her special every time they won, the rush, Chloe wasn't really sure. She just knew that someday she'd have to leave the halls of Barden and move forward.

Like her best friend did – not that they don't stay in touch, they're always on Skype calls with each other, but still.

Chloe groaned, she had so much to think about and she really didn't have that much time for it all. Considering their practices for the last week was pretty much fruitless, she was starting to lose hope they'll ever have a shot at winning the Worlds.

"You okay?" she heard Beca ask. Chloe looked up and sighed as she saw the Bellas all filing in for another unhopeful day.

Beca looked at her expectantly for an answer as she thought about it and shrugged. Beca gave her a tight-lipped smile. "Okay, then. Well, I still don't have any definitive set-list made, sorry." she then said. "But I've been playing around with a few idea in mind."

"Like what?" Chloe asked. "Because trust me, any idea would be welcomed right about now."

Beca smirked. "Well…" she said before turning around to leave Chloe hanging for a minute or two. Chloe watched as Beca gathered all the Beca's at their main rehearsal space. She grabbed a few sheets of paper from her bag, handing them their copies, before turning back to Chloe to pull her along to join them.

"Alright, so…" Beca started to say.

"Hang on, Emily's not here yet." Flo immediately interjected.

"I mean, can't blame her. We aren't supposed to start yet." Stacie then said. "We still have a few minutes to go and she did say her last class was on the opposite side of campus."

"She can catch up whenever." Beca replied before rubbing her palms together, trying to get on with things. "I noted which parts you guys should sing and color-coded a few sets because they're form different songs. Um… I suppose you guys should know how each goes so…" she went rambling on.

Chloe watched curiously as Beca tried to figure out how she should go about things. She first started with Lilly asking her to give her a beat. Beca gave a bit of demo how she should go. She then turned to each of the Bellas, showing them how they should each go about their parts, humming pieces and letting them give it a try a bit before putting it together.

"You real do have a nice voice." Beca mumbled as a compliment when it was Chloe's turn, her cheeks blushing a little and Chloe couldn't help but wonder if it was because she remembered their little shower encounter the day before.

If anything, Chloe couldn't help but wonder if she came up with this in the last twelve hours or so because last time she checked with Beca, she still has nothing much to give the Bellas.

"Alright, you nerds? Got it? Wanna give it a go?" Beca then asked as each of the Bellas tried to go over their parts. She was met with various versions of 'yes' before she checked the time. "Um, I suppose since Emily is still not here, I can sing her part for now."

"Thought you said you can't sing shorty?" Cynthia Rose then asked, giving her a suspicious look but Beca just shrugged.

"I said I don't, not can't, there's a difference." Beca then mumbled as a reply before clearing her throat. Chloe watched as she awkwardly shuffled towards the center of the group as she faced the Bellas. She totally looked out of place for some reason, but Chloe thinks that's just because she's still trying to get a feel of them and get comfortable with this whole acapella thing she seems so opposed to.

"Um, right." Beca then said, taking a deep breath. "Okay, Lilly, give us a beat, Amy and Flo, get ready for back up."

Lilly started, getting right down to it giving a slow and steady beat. Beca let her get the hang of it. Beca looked over to both Flo and Amy to start laying down the rest of the rhythm, their voices blending pretty well. Once everyone seems to be digging just the background beats, Beca pointed at Chloe and Chloe started immediately, Flo and Amy quick to provide much needed vocal support for some lines.

_First things first_ __  
Imma say all the words inside my head  
_I'm fired up and tired of the way that things have been_

Beca then pointed at Stacie and Cynthia Rose, their voices blending into one with their small bit of duet.

_Just a young gun with a quick fuse_ _  
_ _I was uptight, wanna let loose_

They were off to a good start, or so Chloe would say so herself, except Beca didn't want to stop. They found a momentum so they kept going at it. She pointed back at Chloe who picked up on her part.

_Second things second_ __  
Don't you tell me what you think that I can be  
_I'm the one at the sail, I'm the master of my sea_

Before pointing back at Stacie and Cynthia Rose.

_Have a seat in the foyer, take a number_ _  
_ _I was lightning before the thunder_

And finally Beca sang what was supposedly Emily's line, with Stacie and Cynthia Rose giving her vocal support, and Lilly, Amy, and Flo keeping the melody.

_Whip, whip_   
_Run me like a racehorse_   
_Pull me like a ripcord_   
_Break me down and build me up_   
_I wanna be the slip, slip_   
_Word upon your lip, lip_   
_Letter that you rip, rip_   
_Break me down and build me up_

That's when everyone starts to sing their respective parts for the chorus, their voices blending it to an amazing mix of harmonies. Amy and Flo were joined by Ashley and Jessica as they constantly sang the song about thunder while Cynthia Rose, Stacie, Chloe, and Beca sang the other half of the chorus which was from a different song. Lilly maintained in keeping the base beat that was shared by both songs.

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You break me down, you build me up, believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/_ _Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes_

Beca looked over at Chloe, pointing at her to sing her part again.

_Third things third_   
_Say a prayer to the ones up above_   
_All the hate that you've heard has turned your spirit to a dove,_

And with everyone totally getting into the sick beats they were making, she didn't even need to prompt Stacie and Cynthia Rose for their parts.

_Kids were laughing in my classes_ _  
_ _While I was scheming for the masses_

Beca jumped on her part looking more comfortable now, like the very beats of the song were the beats of her heart, and the rhythm and melody they were producing were the blood in her veins.

And Chloe couldn't help but be mesmerized.

_Whip, whip_   
_Run me like a racehorse_   
_Pull me like a ripcord_   
_Break me down and build me up_   
_I wanna be the slip, slip_   
_Word upon your lip, lip_   
_Letter that you rip, rip_   
_Break me down and build me up_

As they hit the chorus a second time, everyone was totally feeling it, sounding more and more like the Bellas Chloe knew that it was giving her goosebumps.

If possible, they sounded even better than before.

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You break me down, you build me up, believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_Cause I love the adrenaline in my veins/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/_ _Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes_

Chloe saw Emily walking into their rehearsal space just they repeated the chorus, Cynthia Rose sustaining the high notes in a few of their lines.

They sounded absolutely amazing,

And it looked like Emily was just as equally amazed with what she was hearing.

_Whatever it_ _**takes** _ _/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes_ _**(ohhhh)** _ _/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You break me down, you build me up, believer, believer/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it_ _**takes** _ _/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_Cause I love the_ _**adrenaline in my veins** _ _/Lightning and the thunder_

_Whatever it takes_ _**(oh-ohhh-oh)** _ _/Thunder, feel the thunder_

_You made me a, you made me a believer, believer/_ _Lightning and the thunder_

Chloe returned her attention to Beca, a huge smile on her face.

And if anything the brilliant DJ was looking rather proud of her little accomplishments with the Bellas.

_Whatever it takes_

The Bellas erupted in cheer as they finished, Beca giving Chloe a smug grin as she found herself feeling pretty elated herself.

"Okay, we need to hear the songs that mashup was from. Seriously, that was amazing!" Stacie then commented and Chloe couldn't help but agree.

As she turned to ask Beca the same thing – figure out the original artist and tracks – Beca bit her lip and looked slightly panicked.

Emily had the same expression on her face as she seemed to have realized something, rushing towards Beca and asking if they could talk for a minute or two.

Chloe couldn't help but wonder what that whole thing was about as Emily was practically in a rush to drag her out of the rehearsal space to have a quick word.

But she didn't press on about it now. She was still on a high with that brief performance, Beca's little stunt was something they definitely needed to feel reinvigorated for the Worlds.

And even with all the worries Chloe had at the moment, she had a feeling they were on the right path.

With Beca by their side, they would conquer the Worlds.

Perhaps, she was that missing thing, Chloe wasn't sure.

All she knew was that was one aca-awesome performance.

* * *

 

"You know why I'm dragging you out here, right?" Emily asked as Beca gave her what would pass as an innocent smile.

Truth be told, Emily wasn't sure if she would hug Beca – because that was an amazing performance she just orchestrated – or be frustrated with her.

"I mean, Chloe's been bugging me about idea…" Beca tried to give her an excuse, "And I wasn't really planning to do it without your go ahead but she was looking gloomy when I got here for practice – which, by the way, is your fault in the first place – so I decided to just go with it."

"You can't use songs that haven't been released in this timeline yet!" she then exclaimed, doing her best to keep her voice low. "Beca, while you're allowed to re-live a year of her life, you can't exactly – and by that, I mean you are not allowed to – mess up the future by using a song that's not gonna be released for like a year or two more even if you already know it because we're not in some pocket universe! We're in real life and right now the future is more like a dream that has not yet set. Everything we do now will have definitive ripple effects, do you understand? Like, this is live reality right here."

"Geez, okay, okay." Beca then replied. "No more stunts like that."

"Promise me Beca or I swear…"

"Angels can swear?" Beca then interjected with a chuckle.

Emily looked at her with a blank expression. "Okay, first of all, we're guardian angels. We're kind of down the order of things and we're closer to human beings than anything that in some alternate universes we actually are humans… you know what? I'm not gonna go into the complicated details. By swear I meant promise. I promise you Beca, there are dire consequences if you mess something up with tampering the timeline in a major unprecedented way."

"I mean, aren't we sort of doing that?" Beca then argued.

Leaving Emily even more frustrated because technically, yes, they are.

But they were here to fix things and make sure that things that were meant to be actually happens this time because the original timeline in this universe that they're trying to fix got so messed up because the things that were supposed to happen didn't happen in the first place.

And seriously how was she going to explain that to her charge?

Emily must have looked like her brain was about to overload because Beca quickly changed her usual indifferent attitude and sounded concerned and sincere the next minute when she apologized again.

"Okay, okay, sorry. I'll stop asking ridiculous questions." Beca then replied as an answer.

Emily took a deep breath to calm herself. "Just promise me you won't ever do that again."

"I promise." Beca quickly replied still looking at Emily slightly confused. She definitely looked like she wanted to ask more questions but Beca held them back. "Should we go inside now? Pick up practice?"

"Yes. Just shrug if they ask about the song. I'll think of something to get their minds off of it." Emily grumbled as a reply.

Yep, this definitely wasn't going to be easy.

And her hardest challenge haven't even shown up yet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, full on focus on this fic now! I needed a break from work so I ended up finishing this chapter :P I'll try to get the next chapter up next Saturday or Sunday as I do need breaks from work, I just don't have that much time to spare for writing, hence still irregular updates. I'll do my best to keep an everyday/every other day upload schedule after my hectic phase (around mid-April?) to be consistent with uploads and let you guys know if I'm gonna miss the next one or not/if there will be delays on a previous upload. :)
> 
> BTW, the Imagine Dragons Mashup is by Sam Tsui. I saw the video about a year ago (when I started writing this fic :P) and thought it would be perfect to incorporate here. Check it out on YouTube for an eargasmic experience ;)


	6. The Curious Case of Beca Mitchell

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Guess who's back… back again?
> 
> Sorry for that weird intro and and being gone for a while, it's been a tiring April…
> 
> Anyways, here's chapter 6! Still busy with work and all but making time to write and update! Check out the end notes for the update schedule.
> 
> For now, here is Stacie and Amy taking note of the weird things happening with Emily and Beca and their own hypotheses!
> 
> Also sorry for the short update. I'm still slowly getting settled back into writing this story. :P

Stacie doesn't exactly know what to think of the two new Bellas. Emily was, well, Emily. There was no other way to describing her other than being Emily. She was like this epitome of incorruptible goodness that she sometimes felt bad when she walks into one of the Bellas crazy shenanigans – which happens on an hourly basis. She was the definition of enthusiasm and innocence too and while Stacie does adore her like a little sister, she wasn't entirely sure how to interact with her on some occasions. Especially at times when Stacie ends up saying something that causes Emily to blush.

Then there was Beca. Beca who Stacie would only see when she drags herself to class in the morning, at Bellas practice, at random times on campus, and late in the evening returning from God knows where. Stacie knew she had a radio station gig, and that she'd sometimes hang out with the not-so-bad Treble, Jesse Swanson, but that was that. She barely talks to anyone else. The only time she ever sees her speaking with anyone at the house was whenever Chloe's around. Beca seemed to be warming up to her and she's most definitely gotten Chloe's attention. But that was the most she's seen Beca interact with others.

Well, that and her seemingly regularly scheduled exchanges with Emily. Exchanges that were starting to get more and more suspicious as the weeks went by. There were hushed reprimands from Emily from time to time after practice, the sometimes motivational speeches on why Beca should embrace being a Bella when she's stuffing her face with cookie late at night in the kitchen and everyone else seemed too busy with their own things.

And then there was that weird thing just the other night. The Bellas were having a movie's night in and Emily tried to convince Beca to join them. Beca occupied one of the armchairs by herself, isolating herself as much as possible from the group as she snuck headphones on and started listening to music. Not being a movie fan was obvious, but Stacie did notice that she stuck around, and looked up once or twice to sneak a peek at what's on the screen just before stealing a glance at Chloe. She saw Beca smiling softly to herself whenever Chloe would react one way or another to what was happening in the movie, and chuckle softly when Chloe would seem teary-eyed at a heartwarming screen.

So not a movie fan, no, but perhaps a Chloe fan.

But that was beside the point.

It was near midnight. Beca practically leapt out of the armchair and ran up the stairs as soon as she realized something – the time perhaps? – and disappeared after that. It caught Stacie unaware as Beca seemed to have just reacted drastically to what seemed to be nothing at all.

"Maybe she needed to pee?" was Amy's explanation.

Although Amy had to admit to her the next morning that something indeed was odd. Amy rushed after her to make sure she was okay and from what Amy said she simply shrugged the whole thing off.

"Except she was rubbing her arm for some reason, like it stung." Amy had told her. "I don't know what that's about cappy."

"Amy, what did I say about you calling me that?" Stacie had reprimanded before prompting her to go on.

Hence the 'Beca Mitchell investigation' had begun. A totally unsanctioned, possibly born out of their paranoia, examination of the day in a life of Beca.

It's been a full week since the two of them plotted how to go about things. Because something was most definitely up and Stacie won't rest until she gets to the bottom of things.

Hence why she packed her things from the nice shade she was sitting under in the quad and slowly made her way through campus, keeping a safe distance away from a grumpy Beca Mitchell stomping through the university.

* * *

 

It's been… well… Amy wasn't really paying much attention to the passage of time.

She was, however, paying attention to her grumpy bite-sized mysterious new roommate.

There's something about Beca that Amy just couldn't put a finger on. Whatever it was, it has been decided that all the Bellas feel some sort of pull form her. Like she was something they've been missing out on all this time.

There was one Bella in particular that Amy just knows is feeling just that, at least from her observations, but for now, she's keeping her need to meddle at bay.

Because there was just something about Beca Mitchell, and while Amy feels a natural connection with her, she was still a Bella first. Which meant she needed to figure out what Beca's deal was before any meddling happens, they can't let their forever fearless leader hurt after all.

For the most part, Beca kept to herself. This despite Amy's constant attempts and breaking through her shell. She's gotten her to chuckle at a comment once and that was the most progress she's made since Beca joined the Bellas. There always seemed to be on her mind and it Amy thinks it was distracting her for the most part.

She'd have guessed it was Chloe based on their interaction and the fact that she was someone Beca just didn't seem to shut off from. If it was Chloe who comes knocking, Beca would answer her door and talk to her, even just briefly.

She and Stacie have been trying to figure out what her deal was for a while now, especially after the movie night incident.

From what she's gathered so far – mostly from her and Stacie tailing Beca – the DJ had very little friends. There's Emily. There was Jesse, the nicest Treble of them all, and then the weird kid Treble who does magic tricks. Most of what Amy has seen were brief exchanges really. Beca's got classes, like every one, and sometimes she'd actually hit the library to study. Stacie did note that she always almost gets frustrated with a few things sometimes, and they couldn't understand why.

Like that one time Stacie saw her talking to Benji, with Beca looking annoyed. Or Beca marching through the quad after she looked to be deep at thought about something. It would usually be preceded or followed by talking to Emily.

She had a radio station gig, although based on what Amy overheard with her last conversation with Jesse, she was slowly passing more responsibilities to him with her having to juggle too many things now that she was a Bella.

Amy figured she was talking about her internship.

No, Beca hasn't told her anything about it, and no Stacie hasn't heard about it either. It was something Amy just recently discovered while going through Beca's stuff the other day to "borrow" money.

The badge said ' _Residual Heat'_  and Amy decided to look it up. Beca had an internship at a recording label.

Which made her stressed out demeanor all the more reasonable.

It was late that afternoon when Amy tried to approach Beca about it. She looked much worse for wear trying to call Jesse – or so she assumed, she didn't really here much of the conversation but she said something about the radio station. Amy tried to reach out and talk to Beca about and it seemed that she might actually succeed at taking a crack at Beca's walls when all of a sudden her phone rang again, Beca was more frantic this time, and before Amy knew it, she got up, got dressed, and got out the door in record time leaving a confused Amy behind.

Wanting to try and keep her progress, Amy decided her men can be without her one night. She could focus on building this relationship with Beca. Hence why she waited for her. Well, she grabbed pizza with the Bellas first but then she marched right back to their room and waited!

And waited, and waited, until Amy dozed off herself.

Amy wasn't sure what time Beca got back. She heard some ruffling sound while she drifted in and out of sleep a few times. But then all of a sudden she heard Beca jumping out of her own bed, or more like falling as she hurriedly ran into their bathroom and slammed the door shut.

Amy woke up with a jolt with the sudden noise. She felt for her phone, checked the time, and saw it was a minute until midnight. Still slightly disoriented, Amy slid off her own bed and made her way towards the bathroom door, wanting to check on Beca.

Was she feeling sick or something? Amy wasn't sure. She was just about to knock on the door when she heard Beca stifle a scream. And Amy nearly broke down the door but stopped herself short when her eyes landed on the glowing light appearing from the cracks of the door.

It was suffice to say that Amy fully woke up after that, pinching herself as she stared all wide-eye at the glowing lights that slowly disappeared.

And then silence.

Afraid that Beca would step out at any moment and catch her snooping, Amy practically jumped back to bed and pretended to still be sound asleep. She shut her eyes close and as tight as possible until she heard the squeak on Beca's mattress that let her know she was back under the covers.

After that, well, Amy just stayed up all night, hiding under the covers with her phone at the ready to search 'strange glowing lights'.

She was too spooked to go back to sleep and still too shocked to talk to Stacie about things. Besides, Stacie might actually just tell her she was dreaming s she had to think things through.

All Amy could think about was one thing.

_What the aca-hell is going on?_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, now, straight to business with the update schedule! I'm currently doing stuff (other than work) that keeps me a bit busy the first half of the week. For now, update schedules would be Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. If a chapter update is long I might skip a day but I'll let you know ahead of time from the previous update. ;)
> 
> On that note, I've been thinking about things regarding future fics. Once I have my mind made up, I'll let you know. It's def either one of three possibilities, but I still need time to decide.
> 
> UPNEXT: The investigation continues! And Beca ponders about life in general… plus a Bechloe moment?


	7. One Quiet Evening

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for the hour delay on the update (it's currently past midnight here so technically it's Friday where I'm at). We had an event earlier and I have a new side project I'm working on (see notes below). Hope you've enjoyed the update. This is still a bit short but I'm starting to fully get back into the story, so hopefully more chapters with reasonable lengths to come.
> 
> Anyways, here is chapter 7 with Bechloe build up and Stacie and Amy sneaking about.

Beca was practically dragging her feet as she finally reached the doorway of the Bellas' house. It was another long day behind her, and all she could think of was that craving feeling she had for her bed.

It was just a quarter to midnight but the house felt empty, both the kitchen and the living room were unoccupied and dimly lit, with close to absolute silence as possible filling the entire house. Not far away she could hear the loud sounds of music thumping out the giant speakers she knew the Trebles liked to pull out for their parties. Beca didn't need to be a genius to figure out that the Bellas were all probably there partying.

It's been a month or so since the big move to join the Bellas and Beca was growing more and more frustrated. Granted, they were by things she had no absolute control of. With every single day of reliving her past life, she sees no answer, no concrete idea of what she was doing. She's been here before, and everything felt like things were unravelling just as they did the last time. The panic swells inside of her like the waves of an ocean threatening to engulf her fully every single time she thought about it.

What thing must she do differently? What was it, her test? Because it couldn't possibly be to set the Bellas on the path to victory for the Worlds, right? It couldn't be as simple as that.

Beca took a deep breath, head in her hands. These days, it felt like a thousand different thoughts were always running in her mind and she really wished she could stop thinking for minute, have everything be still and just stay still.

Have the shadow over her disappear.

The shadow of how her soul will be judged and where she would be sent to.

All so she could just be.

Because honestly, Beca doesn't know what to think anymore.

How she does in her internship this time around, does it really still matter? To Beca it does, but it's because of her love of music.

The radio station? It was her legacy no matter what happens.

The Bellas? Well, verdict was still out on that one.

"You look like the world just crumbled." she heard Chloe say and automatically Beca looked up and found Chloe tossing her purse on the kitchen counter and pulling up a chair opposite Beca. She rested her hands on the smooth surface of the counter top before settling her chin on her hand. "I had a bad date." she said with a huff and sure enough Beca could tell she most definitely was on one, Chloe looked like she was dressed to impress.

Beca wasn't sure why but she most definitely felt annoyed by the thought of it.

"So, Mitchell, what's you're excuse?" Chloe then asked, her bright blue eyes searching her for any sign of answer.

Beca tried to look for words, anything to say really, but no word would come to mind.

She was just too distracted by how blue Chloe's eyes were.

Probably for the best because how does Beca even explain her predicament to anyone like Chloe? To Jesse, well, it was tricky enough but Jesse was her best friend, the ever dependable guy she knew for the entirety of her college experience.

Chloe… well… she wasn't sure what Chloe was to her just yet.

Only that she could feel herself get tongue-tied any time she attempted to speak, that her mind just goes completely blank, and that she could feel her heart palpitating for some reason.

It did the trick though, it made her forget of the thoughts that haunted her for now.

Perhaps Chloe was the cure for her madness?

"Oh come on, you barely say a word to anyone, I'm thankful you actually talk to me though, but only ever about the set list." Chloe then replied before shifting a bit in her sit and leaning towards Beca a little. "What is it, Beca Mitchell? What makes you  _tic_? What's with this mysterious vibe you keep?"

"I'm not mysterious." Beca replied with a chuckle, amused at the thought. She's never considered herself mysterious, no.

Chloe smiled, it was clear she was pleased with the breakthrough. "Then why won't you let anyone of us know you? We practically know everything about Emily already."

Beca chuckled at that. She wasn't exactly well-versed in the rules that govern guardian angels but she knew for sure that whatever Emily had let them know was all in her little guardian angel script.

Beca took a deep breath and shrugs. "Well, what do you want to know Beale?"

Chloe smiled. "I don't know. Maybe everything, does that sound too much?" she then asked and Beca shook her head and smile.

There was something about how Chloe spoke with genuine interest and honesty that made her relax a little instead of feel alarmed that someone was trying to get close to her, know her.

In way, Beca thought it didn't really matter. Emily's been constantly reminding her that she doesn't really have to go through this lifetime like she did the last time. That she could do whatever she wanted, that she should stop overthinking and overanalyzing everything or else the time she's been gifted to relive would all be lost with a blink of an eye.

So screw it if she gets hurt this time. She's lived a careful life and she ended up dead at a young age anyways.

"Well?" Chloe then pressed on. "Come on Beca, surely you have hopes and dreams."

Beca laughed. "Ugh, no, don't say it like that. It sounds too cheesy." she replied, shaking her head. She's had those of course, and she really doesn't know what to think of it anymore. Does she still have that?

Maybe go to heaven and not go to hell for sure.

Beca took a deep breath, "You know, if you asked me that some other time in  _my_ past, I'd probably tell you that my hopes and dreams, they were all I had." she sincerely replied. "I kept chasing after each and every one of them relentlessly. Lately, well, I'm starting to realize that the while the future is something to think about, and the pursuit of my hopes and dreams, the present is just as important. I can't give you much info Chloe, sorry about that. I don't have much other than music really."

And it was the truth.

She had reached her dreams. She was reach, famous, and she could have had anything she wanted

Chloe looked at Beca with a gentle smile, an understanding look on her face. "We can change that." she simply replied, making Beca quirk an eyebrow. "You know, the future's something that leaves me anxious. I may have purposefully delayed graduation and failed the same class multiple times because, well, because I guess I'm scared. I don't what will happen next, or how life will treat me and I don't know, the Bellas became one hell of a tight-knit group my last year and they provided a nice safety net for me. I told myself just one year, and yet, here I am. Still here."

"Here I thought you just really loved being a Bella." Beca then teased.

"Don't get me wrong, I do. We've become a family this last four years. Maybe that's why it became harder for me to let go, maybe because if you only had music, it felt like the Bellas were all I had to. Now, I don't know. We might be at the end of the road, with the Worlds our last hurrah. I don't really know what to feel about the future and I'm still scared of what comes next, but I think more and more, I strongly believe, that wherever I go, I'll always have the Bellas as my family."

Beca nodded as she listened, Chloe's words reaching her.

"And you know, maybe the Bellas can be your family too?" Chloe then asked hopeful. "It's okay, if you think there isn't much to tell about yourself to others, but maybe we could be one of those things someday. I don't need to know the superficial things, you don't strike me as someone who likes small talk anyways. Besides, there's more than one way to know a person, past everything they say and all. But do know we're here, I'm here, whenever you feel overwhelmed about anything." she then added, reaching for Beca's hand on the counter and giving it a squeeze.

Beca looked at Chloe with a bit of awe. She was used to the strictly business about the set-list Chloe, the teasing Chloe too, but this side of Chloe, she never thought t even existed. The somber and wise Chloe.

"You said that the present is just about important, right?" Chloe then said. "Helps us make our dreams come true? Make memories with us, okay Beca?"

Beca simply nodded, not knowing what else to say.

Chloe Beale had just left quite an impression on her as she stood up and left the kitchen.

She's been keeping people behind her fortified walls for as long as she could remember, keeping Jesse and Benji at an arm's length before to protect herself.

Only to realize she ended up locking herself in, missing out on life as it happened.

 _Make memories with you…_ Beca thought to herself.  _All of you…_

… _I might just…_

… _I don't have much to lose anymore anyways._

* * *

"Did you catch any of what they said to each other?" Amy asked, hid behind the couch. They came back home a little inebriated from a party and right behind Chloe's heels. Stacie was about to head straight to her room when Amy dragged her along to spy on her and Beca for a little bit. The two of them practically jumped and crawled about the living room floor to hide form Chloe who headed was heading upstairs in the living room, and now, Stacie's still huddled with Amy on the living room floor.

"No, I don't have super powers, Amy." Stacie replied in a hushed tone and Amy was about to give her a rebuttal when all of a sudden they heard Beca give out a yelp.

Stacie and Amy exchanged looks, climbing up the couch and peering behind it's backrest to find Beca tossing her blazer away, biting her lip, and rolling up the sleeves of her button down. She stared at her arm as some faint blue light briefly illuminated the dimly lit kitchen before it disappeared. The look on Beca's face was indecipherable to Stacie, a mix of emotions flickering quickly before she looked up. Stacie reacted on instinct and ducked, pulling Amy down with her. For her part, Amy kept as quiet and still as possible.

They heard shuffling feet, and Stacie started dragging Amy about on the living room floor, trying to dodge Beca and staying out of sight as best they could, praying she doesn't notice them as she makes a run towards the stairs. As soon as they heard Beca's footsteps disappear, the DJ rapidly going up the flight of stairs, Stacie stood up, a look of disbelief on her face.

Amy followed suit, "Believe me now?"

"I… yeah…" Stacie replied not entirely sure what it was all about.

For all her brilliance, she has no idea what just happened.

And the enigma that was Beca Mitchell just got more interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There's a good chance the story might go the length of 'Your Love is a Song' (i.e., 30 chapters) but that depends on the time I have to spare. If it's based on that, it's probably gonna stick with 25 chapters with update lengths closer to 'What If' (mostly cause of my work load). If I find free time, it might extend by ~5 chapters. That said, things are about to get interesting ;}
> 
> PS: If any of you guys are in grad school or know someone in grad school, I'm currently involved in running a social media page trying to promote mental health awareness! PM me on tumblr (thehypotensivegrad) or twitter ( hypotensivegrad) for more info!
> 
> UPNEXT: Trying times, a performance, an argument, and Beca Mitchell trying to learn that she can't stay stuck in her head overthinking


	8. Of Tiny Bumps and Huge Hiccups

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here is the next chapter! We take a break from Stacie and Amy's investigation and a break from Beca's POV with this one.
> 
> Sorry for the late upload guys, still getting settled with the schedule. Cause of that, let me give you a treat and upload another update both Sunday and Monday.
> 
> Thanks for all the support so far! You're support, comments, and messages keeps me pushing through!
> 
> Also, it's about time we introduce DSM, don't you think (not yet directly, but still…)?

Chloe had her face buried in her pillow, still fuming about a lot of different things, including herself too.

Today was supposedly the day when they measure their opponents, their newly dubbed rivals, see what they were all about.

_Das Sound Machine_

Chloe had done extensive research on them, even watched a few YouTube videos of their performance, and she had to admit, they were good… or you know, something.

But not Bellas good, nope, Chloe doesn't think that.

They were the reigning World champions, so of course it was only natural that she'd look into them and without even having to do much effort, an opportunity had presented itself to the Bellas to scope them out. What with all their cancelled performances, someone had to fill their spot for some of them. Das Sound Machine, or DSM for short, just so happened to be free and apparently famous enough to fill their open spot at a car show.

And so that's how Chloe and the Bellas had their first encounter with the intimidating German army.

Chloe hated every minute of it. She hated the way the crowd started cheering for them, especially when she knew that if things hadn't gone sideways then they should be cheering for the Bellas instead.

She hated the fact that when they're Amazoness of a leader sauntered her way towards the Bellas, everyone else fell silent and Beca, supposed badass – from what she's heard of her from that Treble Swanson at a party the start of the year – DJ Beca, was reduced to fumbling, bumbling, mess, complementing the enemy.

Like seriously, what the hell!

That was probably the most infuriating thing of all!

Chloe wasn't sure how to feel about that. She was very much upset that their supposed strong, united, front, was basically just her. But more than that, there was just something irritating her about the German Valkyrie especially when she started to hone her attention in on Beca.

So maybe that's why when she started reprimanding the Bellas on their way back, she might have gone overboard in chastising Beca for the uncharacteristic dissolution of her resolve.

Which of course led to Beca being irritated as hell for suddenly having all of Chloe's attention – aka her own irritation and frustrations – at her.

Yeah, Chloe really wasn't sure how to feel at the moment, even now after a few hours have passed and she's practically locked herself in her room to cool down the rest of the day.

She knows she might have been a little harsh at Beca there for a moment, and over something so silly as the girl being intimidated by the enemy. Chloe felt a bit upset at herself for that, especially since a few days before she actually felt like she had just managed to get through to Beca. Quiet, seemingly reserved, sometimes enigmatic, but musically gifted and naturally charming when she tries, Beca.

The seemingly irresistible to her, Beca.

Because for some reason Chloe just couldn't understand yet, she couldn't help but feel an inexplicable pull towards her.

And now Chloe has no idea how to reach out to her again.

Technically there was also the thing with Emily bolting and disappearing on them after they got home – Chloe's starting to think it might actually just be the nerves that come from being neophyte Bellas – but it seemed that Stacie had that handled for now.

Chloe started trying to feel for her phone, she was sure she had tossed it somewhere next to her. It was times like this that she knew that what she needed most was Aubrey. She had just found her phone when she heard a tentative knock on her door. Not sure if it was just her imagination, Chloe sat up and looked at the closed door, waiting if there would be any follow up knocks.

And sure enough there was.

Which was strange, mostly because when she was in a bad mood, the Bellas knew to steer clear. Wondering which brave soul it was who wanted to bug her – she was already telling herself to be kind enough to Emily if it was her – she opened the door with as calm a demeanor as possible.

To her surprise, it wasn't Emily. Not anyone of the other Bellas either.

It was Beca, her hands shoved in both her pockets, looking a little bit unsure at what she was doing there as she stared at the carpeted floor to her right side.

"How can I help you?" Chloe asked, keeping her tone as neutral as possible. She didn't want to sound weak to Beca, for some stupid reason really, mostly because she's been trying to rack her brain for a way to get the DJ talking to her again just minutes earlier. She figured it was probably because of her pride, that stupid pride of not wanting Beca to think she was right that they were going a little too overboard with this scoping the enemy thing as she had argued earlier.

Mostly because it annoyed the hell out of Chloe that Beca still thought this acapella business to be ridiculous, especially when Chloe was just starting to hope she was finally seeing what was so great about it.

Beca took a deep breath in front of her, still refusing to look back up at Chloe as she felt for something in her pocket before shoving her hand towards Chloe, fingers wrapped around something Chloe couldn't see.

"Here. It's not the set-list just yet, and it's not anything special, but here." she grumbled.

Chloe felt like she had no other choice but comply, accepting whatever it was that Beca was handing to her. She soon found herself staring confused at a tiny little flash drive in her palm.

"I'm sorry, okay? I get it, winning the Worlds thing is important. Sorry I said stupid things." Beca then mumbled, daring to look back at Chloe, taking the redhead by surprise. For some reason, she strongly believed she would be the one on Beca's side of the conversation.

Beca stood there, waiting expectantly for a reply and Chloe obliged. She took a deep breath and smiled. "I'm sorry too."

Beca gave a nod before awkwardly fidgeting away, not sure if she should give Chloe a wave good bye or something and Chloe couldn't help but chuckle at the whole thing.

Shaking her head, Chloe closed the door, her thoughts still on Beca and the contents of the flash drive in her palms. The DJ mentioned something about the set-list so her guess was it was probably a few of her mixes that was on there. If anything, Chloe's earlier dark mood was already lifting, the smile she gave Beca still dancing on her lips.

Because Beca Mitchell sure was something and she sure does know how to make an apology, maybe not with words but definitely with actions.

And Chloe was just about to realize by how much.

* * *

 

"I'm telling you!" Jessica insisted, with sparkles in her eyes. Most of the Bellas were currently gathered in the living room, trying to figure out their next move after the day they've had. "We saw it with our own eyes! Beca was all grumbling while she was apologizing it was incredibly adorable! And Chloe, she was trying to act super stoic but you just gotta know she was starting to go mush inside. They were totes like an old married couple who just had a fight. I'm starting to think she really does have a thing for our new DJ Bella."

"I can't believe you're snooping on the red fearless leader again." Amy then retorted, shaking her head after Jessica recounted what she and Ashley saw on their way up to check on Beca. The checking up part clearly didn't happen anymore, they had some 'reporting' to do.

"But we do it all the time?" Ashley then replied looking incredibly confused and Cynthia Rose couldn't help but chuckle at that comment. "Especially you, Amy."

Amy was just about to respond when Stacie stopped her. "Okay, okay, spying aside, you two sure everything's okay with our new Bella and Chlo?"

"Affirmative." Jessica and Ashley.

"Good, at least that's one thing off our list to worry, you know, other than the fact will be going up against the new age gothic army of perfectly chiseled acapella singers in the Worlds." Stacie replied with a huff and Cynthia Rose could tell just how much stressed she was getting with this situation. Especially since there were no witty remarks, nothing. Just a very tired response from their other captain.

"So, what's the plan now? Isn't the Legacy still missing?" Flo then asked.

"Don't worry about it, Lilly's on her tail." Cynthia Rose then commented.

"Right, Lilly…" Stacie then said before exchanging looks with Amy.

"What about Lilly?" Cynthia Rose then asked, curious at the exchange.

But Stacie simply shrugged. "Nothing." she replied, before pulling out her phone.

And Cynthia Rose would have pried a bit more, however she figured that even if she tried, she probably wouldn't get much of an answer from either Stacie or Amy.

For now, she figured she'd wait, she'll find out what it was all about eventually.

* * *

 

"Emily, calm down." Benji said as the two snuck off to the currently unoccupied abandoned pool at Barden. On occasion, there would be a few of the High Notes hanging about, or couples sneaking off to make out. Luckily, no one else was in sight at the moment.

"But Benji!" she argued back. Because seriously, how could Benji even say that she calm down at the moment, knowing what she had just found out.

And what would they even do if and when Emily's fears come to fruition? This was her first real mission, she can't fail now. Sure she had Benji there to help her if she needed it, but they were the only two people

But why, oh why did she have to run into  _them_?

"Okay, okay, I'll see what I can do." Benji replied. "We might need back up if you're right…" he added but it fell on deaf ears.

Because of all the possible ones she had to encounter, why, oh why did it have to be  _her_?

_The Kommissar…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wonder why Emily is panicking? :}
> 
> UPNEXT: Another DSM encounter, a visiting face, and a secret revealed?


	9. Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Fire

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Emily dreads the inevitable fight for Beca's soul; Cynthia Rose notes that despite a good number of major set-backs, they've made some progress, Beca-wise at least

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here's chapter 9, as promised, I apologize for being a day late but my boss is back to forgetting I'm human so I'm getting swamped. I've updated the upload sched in the end notes.
> 
> BTW, I'm not showing the entire riff-off for this particular part of the story, instead I'm gonna keep it Emily-centric (for a reason!) and CR-centric.

The last few days had Emily on edge.

Sure, she should be happy. Beca seemed to have started to take her advice. It was one small step each time, but together, Emily knew that it would allow her to get there.

It started the day after the car show. Beca was cleaning up the bowl she used for eating her cereals, the Bellas going on their usual morning routines, when all of a sudden Chloe comes out of nowhere practically tackling her. Except it wasn't really a tackle. It was more Chloe rushing towards Beca from behind to give her a hug.

It took Beca by surprise, she almost dropped her bowl and all. It would seem that all the other Bellas were a little bit surprised as well. Beca tensed but she didn't fight or tried to worm herself free. Instead she found herself relaxing in Chloe's hug as the redhead went on and on about the brilliant playlist she created, that her apology was clearly accepted, and that Chloe was herself apologetic of the way she had acted.

And that was just the start.

Beca started trying. During their practice sessions, during Bella bonding activities – whenever she's not tied-up with her annoyingly-still-a-secret-internship – Emily could see Beca opening up bit by bit. She was trying to talk and get to know the Bellas, and there most definitely seemed to be something starting to bloom with Chloe, or so Emily thought. She was there to observe events, and observe she did.

There was a weird vibe with Stacie and Amy when it came to Beca, the two seemingly torn up about what they think of her, but they seemed to be genuinely interested in knowing the DJ.

Beca was a bit weirded out by Lilly, but she was quickly learning to just deal with it.

She's always mixed up Jessica and Ashley, but everyone else did so maybe it wasn't entirely a Beca thing?

She got along well with Cynthia Rose, the two chatting up every now and then about the latest in pop music.

Then there's Flo who's slowly bonding with Beca through their love of food. Although technically it was Flo's love of cooking and Beca's love of eating.

So, if things have been going so well, why, oh why, was Emily so freaked out?

Well…

It was Bellas bonding time. She wasn't entirely sure who started the whole thing, apparently Chloe was high key stressed again, someone threw a pillow at someone else, and before she knew it, the Bellas were embroiled in an all-out pillow war. Beca walked in highly amused, commenting on how she thinks the whole scene was a major setback for all women-kind. Emily had to smile at how relaxed Beca was, and she was rather excited to see the DJ intrigued by the invitation she had in hand, an invitation to a riff-off.

And Emily had to admit, she was also incredibly excited for it.

But then,  _she_ just had to be there. The she-devil that won't quit.

Emily spent the entirety of the riff-off as a nervous wreck. She kept eying Benji for support but it would seem that  _her_ presence in  _their_ group was starting to get to his nerves as well.

She wanted to be happy, Beca was finally warming up to this whole acapella business. But how can she be happy or proud about this baby steps when she could see how  _the Kommissar_  was watched over Beca like a prey watching her prey.

It was clear. Without a shadow of a doubt, Emily knew that what the Kommissar – aka Luisa in this particular situation – wanted.

What all of DSM wanted…

_Beca's soul._

After all, the entirety of DSM just had to be reapers, stealer of souls, thieves of the Devil. They're sole purpose was tempt, deceive, entrance, and draw in individuals who they knew were on a certain impactful path. Ruin one life that could affect many others. Steal lost and unjudged souls a like for their boss and increase their own powers.

And oh goodness, the charms the reapers possess. They're hardly ever breakable. That's why Emily knew why Beca was so enthralled with the Kommissar, why she couldn't stop complementing her.

Also why Emily disappeared and sought out Benji for help. Because this, this was serious.

Emily knew, reapers would always be there when it came to souls like Beca. No, especially to souls like Beca that could not be judged and who gets send back for their test so that they can be judged. Emily was mentally prepared for that, at least somewhat. She knew it would be a fool's dream to think this job would not have any challenges.

But why did she have to get her? The most infamous stealer of souls. The most powerful, most alluring, the greatest of all reapers and the most nightmarish one to deal with?

She's heard stories, of course she had. She's seen the tearful faces of failed guardian angels who went toe-to-toe with the Kommissar. Only a handful had succeeded, and that was because she was alone. She didn't have her cohorts with her.

Not like in this case, nope.

Because the Kommissar came ready to fight a war.

And perhaps, it was because of that thought that Emily had become so distracted that when her turn came, she became the reason for the Bellas losing.

DSM picked up their win, celebrating their victory with a thunderous roar of chants. The party was in full swing. Chloe was clearly upset and Beca was stepping up for Emily.

But Emily didn't pay much attention to any of that. Her eyes had landed on the Kommissar's. Her confident sneer, the triumphant grin, it all sent shivers down Emily's spine.

She cannot mess this up.

No.

Not when the Fate of multiple lives hang in the balance.

Boy, she really wished the reinforcements would come soon.

* * *

To say that Chloe was upset would be an understatement and Cynthia Rose understood how terrible she was feeling right now. Losing always bummed them all out. And sure, the Bellas lost a few riff-offs before, but nothing ever compared to losing against your newel-dubbed arch-nemesis who were so in sync with their choreography, in tune with their own sound, and definitely on the same page when it comes to their killer looks that they could end the Bellas' dream for acapella supremacy once and for all. Because yes, losing sucked, but losing when you have nothing else to give but your heart and soul for music, when everything you held dear to was on the line, it was ten times much worse.

Okay, that was a lie. It felt like a hundred times worse. It was only bearable because the Bellas where, well, the Bellas.

But that night was strange for Cynthia Rose. Because Amy wasn't trying to cheer anyone up with her usual shenanigans. Nope, instead she was huddled in a corner talking to Stacie and Lilly about something. If Cynthia Rose had to guess, that 'something' would probably be Beca or Emily, or both really. She's caught at least Stacie and Amy exchange whispers about Beca at least once or twice now.

Then there was Emily who had luckily manage to evade the wrath of one Chloe Beale when they got home for two reasons. The first was she literally narrowly escaped the redhead's lecture by saying that she had an emergency she needed to address before disappearing with Benji outside the Bellas house. That clearly didn't help Chloe's temper but Beca was quick to support Emily and calm her down. Which brings reason number two, Beca herself.

Beca was still pretty much a mystery to most of the Bellas, but something was different, something was changing and Cynthia Rose could see it. Since Beca and Chloe's initial fight, the DJ looked like she was trying, slowly warming up to the Bellas and all.

She even joked with Cynthia Rose the other day when she asked Beca why she seems reluctant in getting to know the Bellas that it wasn't that she's antisocial or she hates the Bellas, she was just "selectively social" and she wanted to be sure that the people she let in her life would be worth the trouble they come with.

"And so, what's the verdict, little bit?" Cynthia Rose asked with a chuckle.

And Beca just smirked, something that Cynthia Rose took as a positive sign.

At least they had progress in something.

If anything, she was most definitely warming up to Chloe, getting her to calm down from being too upset about Emily and losing against DSM.

"They won the fight Chlo, that doesn't matter much. And it doesn't matter how many fights they keep winning." Cynthia Rose heard Beca say as she watched her and Chloe get settled in the couch, the two in their PJs already. It was a quarter past midnight after all.

Cynthia Rose set the glass of water she got in the kitchen late that night and leaned on the counter as she watched the two just talk. It was nice to see Beca be this relaxed around at least one Bella.

_On that note, when did she start calling Chloe by her nickname? Interesting developments…_

"It kind of matters, Becs." Chloe argued, crossing her legs on the couch and grabbing one of the throw pillows to hug. "By the way, you don't need to seat here with me. You were clearly heading somewhere when I ran into in the hallway."

"Oh, um, I really don't…" Beca started to say.

"I mean, if you want to see the Treble… I saw you two earlier at the party, you seemed really close." Chloe started to say and Cynthia Rose would be damned if she didn't hear the slight hint of jealousy in her tone.

"Yeah, definitely not." Beca responded, her tone slightly rising and Cynthia Rose wasn't sure if she should even still be there overhearing things but it didn't seem like the two noticed her presence either. She was about to sneak back to her room when she heard Chloe clear her throat and straight up asked Beca. "So he's not your boyfriend?"

"For the last time – because apparently everyone in the Bellas won't quit asking me no matter how many times I answer them – no, we are not. Def not interested either." Beca replied, her tone adamant.

Chloe chuckled. "Okay, if that's what you say." she then replied. "But why'd you come down then?"

"Just wanted to think." Beca then replied with a deep breath. "Maybe I'm kinda worried about Emily too."

Chloe smiled and nodded. "And you?" Beca then pressed on.

"Worried about a lot of things." she replied honestly.

"But see, that's why I was saying what I was saying earlier!" Beca then replied. "Doesn't matter how many fights we lose, how many rounds we get knocked down, what matters is we win the war. Don't worry much Chlo, I'll do everything I can to make sure we win the Worlds."

" _We_?" Chloe then responded with an amused tone. "I thought acapella wasn't your thing Beca Mitchell?" she teased, leaning slightly closer to where Beca sat, challenging Beca for a rebuttal if her grin was anything to go by.

But Beca simply shook her head and stared back in Chloe's eyes before briefly looking away as she cleared her throat, the intensity of the stare getting to her. She dared look back at Chloe with something more akin to a smile than the usual grin she wore. "You heard what I said, I'm not repeating myself." Beca replied in her usual manner, before settling down the couch, sinking into the backrest and taking a deep breath. "Now, Chloe Beale, are you just going to keep teasing me or will you join me?"

"Join you in what?" Chloe asked amused by her antics.

"Stay with me a while." Beca replied. "Clear your head with me."

"Beca, I didn't know you were big on meditating." Chloe replied with a smile.

Which earned her a pillow smacked to her arm courtesy of Beca. "It's called enjoying the present moment as it is Beale. I'm not big on it, but I don't know. I kinda like not being alone with my thoughts. Is it weird that to clear my head I want to just sit in the silence of this living room with you?"

"A little bit." Chloe admitted with a bit laughter. "But I kinda feel the same." she then added before shifting her position so that she and Beca faced the same direction before leaning closer, resting her head on Beca's shoulder.

Beca seemed surprised, briefly looked over where Chloe rested her head on her shoulder, and quickly looked away.

Something about the moment felt a little too sacred for Cynthia Rose to even dare disrupt or intrude upon by her accidental spying that she decided to sneak back to her room at that moment.

So maybe they lost, but noting rung truer than Beca's words in that moment.

They'll win the war.

Together with the bonds they forged with each other and are now forging…

So let the devil come.

They'll still conquer the Worlds.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, I have one more promised update but since there's a couple of things going on in it, I'll move it to Thursday. I should have enough time to meet the Thursday update as promised as well! On that note, after Thursday's update, I'm making updates T/Th/Sa from now on as it seems to suit my schedule better.
> 
> UPNEXT: Emily and Beca have a little chat; a party ft DJ Badass Beca; and poor Emily gets cornered? But hey, her lone reinforcement will come soon!


	10. The Investigation Continues

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here’s chapter 10 featuring Amy and Stacie’s continued investigations, a brief chat with Beca and Luke (hey Luke’s back!), and a confession?!

Nothing makes sense.

Stacie and Amy have spent weeks – weeks! – trying to come up with a reason, any explanation at all, for the weird glowing thing that appeared on Beca's hand that night they accidentally spied on her and Chloe.

They've even employed Lilly's help, and nothing. Lilly has offered her specialties from a twenty four hour surveillance of Beca's every movement to a possible exorcism ritual because Amy has had Lilly convinced that maybe Beca's possessed or something.

But again nothing.

Every midnight, as the clock strikes twelve, the glowing lights appear on Beca's right hand. The high resolution images that Lily magically produced showed bands showed the eleven original ribbons they first saw on the pictures become ten, with the Roman numeral numbers in the middle of each. The last band on her arm always hand numerals that kept changing every fricking night.

_What in the aca-hell was that about anyways?!_ Stacie thought to herself as she rubbed her temples. They were at yet another party, this time hosted by one of the frats friends with the Bellas. The speakers were blaring the right kind of music, the drinks kept flowing, and all Stacie could think about was the weirdness that was the glowing tattoo on Beca's hand.

It didn't help that she caught a glimpse f said hand tattoo-free as Chloe dragged her out of the Bellas house earlier to join them. Yep, it was because of that. Now Stacie couldn't take her mind off of it.

The tattoo, when it appears, apparently causes her pain too. And when it's about to appear, Beca tries to dodge company, which makes it painfully obvious that she's keeping whatever the deal behind that was a secret.

_Which makes sense, Conrad. If that ever happens to you, would you ever want to let the Bellas know?_ Stacieonce thought.

It made sense for Beca to keep it a secret.

But to Stacie, it didn't.

Because yes, she would want the Bellas to know.

Which made her understand Beca even more. She didn't have anyone like the Bellas, who would she run to and ask for help or something?

Amy provided the answer one afternoon, after admitting she set Lilly loose after Jesse Swanson.

Stacie went to apologize that evening after tracking down Jesse. He looked quite traumatized but apparently no mater whatever the hell it was that Lilly did, he barely budged – so kudos to him, she guessed. Amy was rather impressed. And of course Lilly started to respect him more.

The only information that Jesse did give was that if they wanted to know what was going on, ask Beca directly. But knowing that would be futile effort, he also provided Emily as a possible source of information.

Stacie took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She scanned the room she was in as she looked for Beca and Chloe but the two have disappeared from her sight. Checking her phone, she saw a message from Amy saying that they were all by the pool outside.

Which meant that Stacie was free to keep an eye out on Emily and maybe find an opening. Because yes, they really do want to get to the bottom of things, preferably fast. As much as Stacie wants to be wary of Beca, well, she was making it very hard to do so.

Amy's resolve was already crumbling itself. Apparently the two of them shared an "epic roomie moment" and that they were now on their way to being BFFs. They already knew about her internship, at least Amy, Lilly, and Stacie herself did, and Amy said that Beca kid of opened up a little bit to her the other night, and bit more just yesterday. Amy was still unsure how to go about asking Beca the question about her glowing hand because "What if she says she's an alien or something, cappy? I don't think my awesomeness can handle that." or so Amy worried.

So far, Legacy was sticking with the too-nice-to-be-a-Treble kid, Benji. Stacie started moving, following them out the front porch after something – by his reaction of waving a hand, Stacie would guess it was more of a someone – caught his attention and he grabbed an anxious Emily by the hand to lead the way out.

Stacie lost sight of her and Benji though as she kept running into a bunch of other college kids.

What she did find, however, was an old familiar face. One of Chloe's – and by extension Aubrey's, though she refuses to admit it – college friends, Luke.

Stacie felt for her phone again and shot a quick message, this time to Lilly.

Lilly was quick with a response in the form of a live audio feed of their chatter. The line was a bit choppy, but somehow the image of Lilly in a tree-top somewhere trying to record everything made Stacie remember she should just be thankful she didn't have to do it herself.

Words like "reaper" and "tests" were popping up, and without the full context, she really couldn't make any sense of it.

"Hey Stacie, saw you leaving, what's the plan?" Amy then said, out of breath as she suddenly caught up with her. Stacie turned to give her a questioning look.

"I thought I told you to keep an eye out on Beca and Chloe?"

"Chloe jumped into the pool again, Beca and CR helped her out and took the shortcut back to the house. When I saw you leave, I figured you might need someone exactly with my skill sets."

"I… well… just come follow me… long story, but here." Stacie mumbled as she quickly attached a pair of earphones to her phone, handing one to Amy. "Lilly shared her location so we should be able to catch up with them."

"With who now?"

"Legacy, Benji  _and_ Luke."

"Tall, yummy, and still needs to be mine Luke?"

"Yeah, one and only." Stacie replied with a chuckle. "I thought you had a steady thing going with Bumper." she then commented.

"Bumper understands that momma's a Rolling Stone." was Amy's quick response as they hurried on over to where Lilly was.

They were still on a mission after all.

And one way or another, they were going to get their answers tonight.

* * *

Emily was having a crisis, she really couldn't get things out of her head, hence why Benji called Luke to help calm her down and make a plan to deal with the Kommissar when she pops up again.

Because yes, Emily is most definitely a neophyte in all of this and this is her first mission. She also really does care for Beca. So yeah, failing wasn't an option.

With the difficult task at hand – considering Beca's brief encounters with the Kommissar too – Emily and her two cohorts decided that it would be best to let Beca into the loop of things.

No, they still really can't tell her what her test was all about but the official guardian angels rulebook didn't say anything about warning Beca of reapers after her soul. They're not allowed to say who though, at the end of the day, Beca needs to make life decisions based on her own will. The rules were annoying, sure, especially at times like this, but Emily had to adhere them. Vague warnings might not mean much but her goal right then was to guide Beca, and this fell into the realms of guiding her.

Hence why after Emily tracked Beca down at the Bellas house, she ushered her outside to meet Luke and Benji by the lakeside and let her know about the reapers.

Beca looked both curious and amused when she saw Luke cheerfully greet her. As soon as they started talking about the reapers though, the amusement disappeared. Beca's brows were deeply knotted together and Emily couldn't get a read on her thoughts.

"So let me get this straight." Beca then said, once Luke was done with his explaining. "After living a life that apparently amounted to close to nothing despite the success I gained because my soul can't be judged, I'm stuck here on earth reliving a moment in my life I've let slipped to undergo a test – a test whose nature I don't know – so that my soul can be judged. I go through the same daily routine of fighting every urge to overthink and just 'live' – because apparently that's all Emily can say to help me – and not worry that I'm heading down the same path or worse with each and every decision I make. I go through every night in the same maddening existence, trying to escape people's company to hide the fact that I have a literal timer on my hand that only conveniently appears at midnight telling me when I'll finally run out of time. By the way, it hurts like hell each time it appears, just so we're clear. And now you're telling me there are so-called reaper things who are going to try and steal my soul and drag me to literal hell."

"Yep, pretty much that." Luke replied unfazed of Beca's rising temper. "You can be flip all you want, Beca, but we're telling you this because if they get to you, you fail your trial and that's it. You get a one way ticket to hell."

"And none of this seem unfair to you? Not the fact that you can't tell me who the reapers are, nope? You have Emily here telling me to open up to people and now you're telling me I need to be wary? Dude, trust me, flip is the least thing I am right now 'cause I've had about enough of your vague warnings or nudges."

"I'm really am sorry we can't tell you much Beca…" Benji then started to but in before Beca shushed him with a glare. Emily was a little thankful it wasn't directed to her, that was her little bit of relief.

But mostly she was still struggling with all of it too. The need to help Beca, the desire to pull her first mission off with a success. If people think angels don't get tested to, they're so wrong.

It's just their trials are a little bit different. They're all internal.

And mostly personal.

"If we directly influence any of your decisions, Beca, then you fail too. The only reason why we're giving you a head's up is because the enemy does not play fair by the rules of engagement. They'll try everything to steal your soul. I know it's frustrating, all the mixed signals, but it is what it is. You just have to trust your gut."

"Ugh, you're not helping! Would you just stop messing with my head already?" Beca then said, throwing her hands up in the air before rubbing her temples together as she tried to calm herself down. Emily watch her start pacing – stomping really – back and forth, shaking.

And there was nothing more that Emily wanted to do but tell her it's going to be okay.

But Beca needs to process this on her own.

"I hate this. I hate all of this. What if I end up trusting the wrong person?" she asked, looking up and addressing Emily this time.

And it was then at that moment, upon meeting Beca's stare, that Emily truly felt like she was Beca's guardian angel.

Her glassy-eyed look telling Emily that the burden of her fears and thoughts were too much, that brief flash of a look that tells her that Beca was seeking her guidance, that's when she knew.

Emily took a deep breath and fought back all her own fears too. Her charge needed her.

"You won't Beca. You've got good instincts, trust them. And if you can't, I'm here remember, trust me. I promise, I'll do everything I can not to let you down. I know it's confusing and tough, but I'm here." Emily then replied. "We just don't want you in danger, that's all. Be mindful, but don't overthink. I know right now it doesn't make any sense why I keep saying 'just live' but I'm hoping when the time comes you will. You've found something in the Bellas, haven't you?"

Beca took a deep breath and looked away. The heartbroken look on her face was enough for Emily as an answer.

Yes, she most definitely has.

And Emily could tell that Beca wasn't sure how to feel about it.

"Listen Beca, I know it's trying but the point of the trial is figuring it out. We're here to give you options, be the voice of reason, and point things out. But sometimes, even if you follow all the rules, you still completely miss the point and no good will come of it. Tell you what, all I'm saying is live your life, make the most of the time you have left. Think about what lessons you're supposed to learn, what life's all about and all those fun things." Luke then said.

"What Luke's saying is that we're sorry we can't give concrete answers, but we are here if you need us Beca. We just wanted you to know what you're up against." Emily then summarized.

Beca nodded with a huff as a response.

"And if you need to talk about anything…" Emily started to say, sensing that Beca had a few things he needed to get off her chest but she simply shook her head.

"Thanks, I guess. Now if you'll excuse me, I think I kinda need to go." Beca then said before quickly making her way back to the house.

Emily wanted to run after her, but Luke stopped her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Let her have some time to process. We want to help her Ems, but we can't suffocate her. Besides, you should have a moment too. Breathe and relax and don't over think. The Kommissar is after her but we have time. She doesn't exactly have a good reason to keep popping up around Beca. That would make her suspicious. Which means that if the occasion doesn't arise, all we have to do is prepare for the inevitable run in at the Worlds." Luke said. "And if you need help Benji's here. I think I'll stick around too. Got that?"

Emily took a deep breath and nodded.

And that was that, meeting adjourned, they could all go back to their own corners and focus on the whole task at hand.

It would be the case for Benji who went back to the party and Luke who promised to be back after making a report about the reapers as he disappeared into a soft glow of light.

But most definitely not for Emily who, halfway back towards the Bellas house, was cornered by a teary-eyed Stacie and Amy, with Lilly sticking around behind them.

"Wh-what's going on?" Emily asked, unsure.

"We heard everything." was Stacie and Amy's chorused reply.

Emily looked at them confused before realizing that they meant the talk about Beca.

"I-I…" Emily begun to say, searching for any reason, any sort of explanation, for the things they might have overheard.

"We also have a video of everything so don't try to deny it!" Amy then argued. "That and a mountain of evidence collected by Lilly! Right Lilly?"

Lilly nodded.

"Which means you also have to start telling the truth to us Emily. We care about what's happening here, especially to Beca. We saw Luke disappear into some weird light, we've seen the mark on her hand. What's going on?" Stacie then said.

Emily gulped. Between the serious look on Stacie's face, the frantic one on Amy's, and the almost threatening look on Lilly's, she felt like she had no other choice.

Emily knew the whole thing was never going to be easy, but somehow, Beca's case and her mission had just reached multiple new levels of complicated.

She was so going to get a scolding from St. Peter.

* * *

Her head was hurting from all of the thinking. From everything that's happened to her since the day she met St. Peter, Beca was basically just trying to keep the overwhelming feelings threatening to swallow her whole at bay.

Ad now she has to worry about her soul because of so called reapers.

The timer's gone off, another day gone, and the stinging feeling left on her arm was a good enough distraction from the thoughts that haunt her when she's alone at night.

Talking with Chloe helped. With the insanity that was the Bellas prepping for the Worlds, the two found themselves sharing the couch together past midnight, just talking. About the competition, about the Bellas, about everything. But with the party that night and Chloe's deeply inebriated state, Beca knew there wouldn't be any late night talks to distract her.

To distract her from starting to care about the Bellas, about wanting to win the Worlds, or about making Chloe smile.

To distract her from the truth that she found something to care about just as she was counting the days before saying goodbye.

Beca placed her hand on the doorknob, hesitating for a minute to get out of the bathroom in her shared attic room with Amy. A part of her had wanted to just simply hide away there, another part figured that maybe having the possible company of Amy for the night might not be so bad. With that in mind, she took a deep breath and opened the door to reveal the strange sight before her. Stacie and Amy were both sitting by the foot of Amy's bed looking rather emotional, Lilly stood silently by the corner of the room, and Emily hung out by the door, rubbing the back of her neck.

Beca looked at Emily confused, "They figured stuff out." she admitted and Beca nodded before being swept off by a bawling Amy off her feet.

"Oh Shorty! We're sorry!" she cried out before all but diving into Beca's bed, with her full weight on top of her.

It didn't help that Stacie joined in, diving towards where the two were messily sprawled on the bed, holding onto Beca. "Just don't think much of it now, okay Beca? You're a Bella now. You're not alone in this anymore." she then added before feeling another bit weight on top of her, Lilly joining in.

Beca absolutely was not a fan of hugs – well, maybe except Chloe's for some reason – but for that moment, she welcomed it.

Something about what Stacie said reminded her of what Jesse said the night he found out too. She wasn't alone anymore.

But now, it felt different. When Jesse said it after that night, she knew she could count on her best friend whenever she asked for his help.

Now Beca was understanding what Chloe meant when she said the Bellas were a family. Because now, ask for their help or not, she knew the Bellas have her back and never leave Beca alone.

Because now, Beca has found her unexpected family.

And she couldn't help but think that perhaps this was the silver lining in her trials. That she gets to live at least a year having a family like the Bellas.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! So, last update on the sched for sure! It’ll be Wed and Sun. I’m adjusting things based on the demands of my workload but I think this one’s the winner and most reasonable/reliable one. Anyways, thanks for the continuous support guys, you keep me going. The notes, comments, reviews, and messages are all deeply appreciated. You’ve been awesome readers from the start and you still are!  
> UPNEXT: Aftermaths of unsuccessful performances! Bechloe! And Beca starts to realize something?


	11. In a Different Life

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Thanks for keeping up with the constant changes in my upload schedule. Your comments and messages keep me going too! All are very much appreciated.
> 
> Here's chapter 11 with a sprinkle of Bechloe, and a heart-to-heart talk between Emily and Beca.

With everything happening around her, Beca found herself just focusing on each and every moment that was passing her by a sit happened.

Like, for example, the overnight BFFs she's made – or so Amy claimed – the night that Amy, Stacie, and Lilly found out about her secret.

Emily looked tense, but Beca had to admit, it made her burden to carry a little bit lighter. It's been a week and a half since, with the Bellas embroiled with their practice for a convention performance, and the two has made life easier for Beca. Amy has stopped stealing her money and started packing her snacks for her internship. Stacie made sure she was on top of her academic progress. And most importantly, he two combined provided excuses for her when she couldn't be at bonding activities or parties because she had to hide the glowing timer on Beca's hand. They've also gotten in touch with Jesse to deal with the reaper problem, of which Lilly seemed to have had many colorful – if not conceptually terrifying – ideas. Beca most definitely did not want to get herself involved, if only to ensure she doesn't fail her trial because of knowing of their latest plans.

So Beca channeled her focus on cooking lessons with Flo, or learning more about the Bellas from Cynthia Rose. Her favorite was hanging out with Chloe, just talking or working on the set list and their plans for their performances.

Things were a little bit too flashy for Beca's tastes, she wasn't going to lie, but Chloe insisted they had to if they wanted to beat DSM at their own game. For whatever reason, she just couldn't really say no to her whims.

"Is it always really like this? Like all out with the props and the choreography?" Beca asked after their practice session with the Bellas that afternoon. She was gathering her things by the piano, with only Chloe left as company.

Chloe stood still, looking rather deep at thought. "I guess. Maybe? I don't know." was her reply.

Beca looked at her confused and Chloe laughed. "We used to be bit boring, although when you meet Aubrey, don't tell her I said that."

"Why?" Beca couldn't help but ask.

"Well, we did older songs, stuck with the Bells traditional ones and all. We almost lost our chance at ever winning Nationals during our senior year, my first senior year, and if it wasn't for your mix on the radio inspiring us, we probably wouldn't have. After that, well, we needed to get creative. We're not all musical geniuses like you, Beca. Most of our creativity was channeled into better choreography, the use of props here or there. We started listening to more mixes online and trying to adopt them, but that was it."

"Oh, well, it seemed you guys were doing pretty okay with just that." Beca commented.

"Yeah, but nothing about it was just us, you know? The Bellas. Nothing resonated with us as our own sound. And I mean, you see what happened with Amy during our last disastrous performance."

"Yeah, quite a memory. Amy made me watch it multiple times." Beca replied, the memory of it still haunting her.

Chloe chuckled and shook her head. "Couldn't help but wonder what could have happened if we met earlier, if you joined the Bellas earlier."

Beca nodded before the realization hit her.

_Wait… I… wait…_

She watched Chloe gather her things as a memory of a crowded quad flashed I her mind, of a brief encounter where Beca was certain she said…

… _I said I couldn't sing… I said… Chloe and I met before?!_

She looked dumbfounded as Chloe tried to get her attention and say goodbye, the redhead rushing to leave so she could make it to her next class. Chloe said something about coffee that afternoon and Beca wasn't entirely sure if she said yes or not, but how could she?

She ran away.

She was always running away.

From the things that she could end up being the best thing that ever happened to her, from life happening right in front of her.

From the Bellas, from Chloe.

And now she found herself lamenting how short of a time she had left with the Bellas when she could have had more.

So how could Beca even pay attention to what was around her then, when she realized things could have been different?

When the things she ran away from the first time around were catching up with her along with her regrets.

With everything that's happened, Beca wasn't sure how to think or feel, just that she needed to move forward whether she wanted to or not. There was a literal judgement day waiting for her at the end of all this, and she wanted to stop wasting what time she had left.

She wanted to make the most of it.

* * *

When Emily went on her mission to guide her charge, she was ecstatic. This was her chance to prove her mettle, show her worth and all.

Yeah, a lot has happened since day one.

Stubborn charge in Beca, check. One human who knows of her secret as Beca's guardian angel, check, although that was Beca's doing. Worst possible enemy on the prowl of Beca, check. Three supposedly unsuspecting human beings finding out Beca's secret, threatening terrible, terrible things to sway Emily to telling the truth – and since Emily was an angel, it was her duty to make sure things don't go out of hand that she decided to cave for Amy, Stacie, and Lilly's sakes – well, also a check.

It's like all things that could possibly go wrong was already going wrong.

Hence the sulking on the porch late that night, her hands in her palms, staring into the dark sky. The Bellas were having a quiet night in, all tired from practice. This was her moment of peace.

"You look like you're having a crisis." she heard Beca say as she approached Emily, hands in the pockets of her pants that matched the black blazer she wore. Emily simply smiled back and chuckled.

It was close to midnight, and Beca looked tired as well. She knew that the DJ had to help out on an event the label she was interning in was throwing. And yet, here she was, sitting down next to Emily on the porch. Somehow it felt wrong, Beca sensing Emily needed someone to talk to, and it was mostly just because Emily feels like the situation they were in was reversed.

But in a way it also felt right. Beca was the senior college student and Emily the freshman.

Emily chuckled again as they sat in silence. She couldn't help but think if this was how things would be in a different life, a different world. Typically angels are angels no matter what, but guardian angels are a special case. Emily heard that the reapers were too. In some alternate reality, they could live human lives, and it was because of how they spend most of their time on earth interacting with humans that they were a little bit closer to them.

In some other universe, Emily could really be that college freshman seeking for advice.

But not in this reality.

Emily cleared her throat, finally addressing Beca. "You looked just as stressed."

Beca shrugged. "Yeah, well, I've got a lot to think about." she replied sounding almost a little bit reluctant.

"Not overthinking I hope." Emily replied and Beca shook her head.

"No, not that." she said, turning to look away from Emily. "It's your fault though, you brought me to the Bellas. And now… I hate this. I'm starting to care about them. Flo and her cooking. Cynthia Rose and her cool vibes. Jessica and Ashley's strange synchronicity and how they almost say things in chorus. Lilly's weirdness. Amy and Stacie's random and potentially questionable ideas. Chloe… I absolutely hate it. I hate that it's hurting to think that I'll have to say goodbye at the end of the year.

Emily looked at Beca at a loss. She was doing a good job keeping her emotions at bay, but Emily knew better. They say the eyes are the windows to the soul and one glimpse into Beca's stormy blue ones was enough to tell Emily about the sea of emotions welling up inside of her.

On one hand, Emily was happy Beca was making progress. She found something she cared about – the Bellas and all – and found something she'll miss.

Something to treasure and value.

And perhaps something to get her to live.

Emily searched for the right words to say only to be interrupted by Beca who went on. "This sucks." she said. "You know, not gonna' lie here, but at the start of this, all I wanted was to figure out what the trial was and finally be judged so I can move on. I wanted to see what heaven's like, and I'm scared to find out how hell is."

"It's based on your personal heaven or hell. The perfect life and the worst nightmare." Emily muttered under her breath in response before stopping herself, realizing her error of letting something like that slip.

_She can't know that! Emily, control yourself._

"But you were saying something…" Emily added, hoping that Beca would ignore her.

Beca looked at her strangely for a second before going on. "But, well, now I just… I can't help but wish time would slow down." she then replied. Beca took a deep breath and closed her eyes. "I wish I could linger here longer." she added, as if she was trying to envision the life she had now before opening her eyes again. "Don't get me wrong, everything is like high key stressful but… I've let life pass me by without knowing what it could all be about. I still don't know anything but now I find that all I wish for, impossible as it may be, was more time. I don't think I could actually say goodbye to those nerds.

Emily would be lying if she said that Beca's words wasn't getting to her. She was proud of her progress but she never realized how much it actually made her job more difficult.

Because now Emily was scared of failing Beca even more.

And now, it was becoming harder for Emily to resist simply telling Beca the whole truth. She could see it, the pain that Beca was trying to hide. The pain of having found something she thinks she could never really have or hold.

But before having to actually wrestle with her own thoughts and emotions on what to do, the timer on Beca's hand appears, marking another day down. Emily watched Beca stare at the glowing bands slowly disappear, a melancholic smile on her face, before taking a deep breath and standing up.

"Ah, no more sulking, I can't waste more time doing that." she announced before turning to Emily to say goodnight. "Get some good rest too, okay?"

Emily simply nodded, afraid she might say something she shouldn't, and watched Beca disappear into the house.

"Man, I really do need to stick around, don't I? You almost told Beca something you weren't supposed to." Luke then said, a few steps away, leaning on a tree. "You can't spill the beans about the test. And, I know it doesn't have anything to do with Beca's trial, but you explain tell how heaven or hell is like to her. Everyone's heaven is their personal perfect bliss, hell, their personal perfect torture. That is the truth. But she can't know. She needs to focus on her trial, not on why someone needs to  _live_ to be judged for their afterlife. Okay Emily? So don't go telling anyone that. Beca or not Beca."

"I won't!" Emily indignantly replied as she stood up and marched closer to where he stood. "What are you doing here anyways?"

"Checking in. Also, I've talked to good ol' Pete about your little problem. He's not happy about it but, there's always a solution to any problem, especially if things get out of hand." Luke replied.

"What do you mean?" Emily asked.

But Luke simply shrugged and smiled. "All in due time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nope, that's not a tear in my eye… It's just allergies… Totally not emotional because of Beca's sentiments.
> 
> Although PS, if you think that's a bit emotional, wait until Beca realizes her feelings for Chloe ;)
> 
> Also… Luke's lines, they're a hint (with misdirects of course). So let me know what you guys think!
> 
> UPNEXT: We get a peak of Aubrey (and foreshadowing?)! Bechloe! And more Bechloe! And what is it with chapter 12s that I have a special moment planned in most of them? 3


	12. Of Second Chances and Regrets

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Don't look no farther, baby I'm back, yeah! :3
> 
> Here is chapter 12 featuring a brief appearance (well, sorta) of Aubrey, Bechloe moments. Sorry for suddenly disappearing, I got swamped with work and I'm still recuperating a bit. Grad school is tough most days, guys, and then there are days when it's just plain extra.
> 
> I don't own pitch perfect.

She could feel it. The heavy burden that's been slowly crushing her the past couple of months. Beginnings are always hard, the future always an uncertainty. That's why Chloe stuck around with the warm and familiar feeling of a family she had with the Bellas.

Lately, however, all she could see, experience, and live with them are one trainwreck of a performance after another – if their recent convention performance where Cynthia Rose was injured – was anything to by.

It felt like her choices led her to nothing but ensured failure, that her choices were slowly amounting to nothing, especially with the rest of the Bellas seemingly more concerned about graduation at the end of the year, doing well with classes and working on their resumes and job prospects as they begin to wrap up this point of their lives.

They were closing the chapter that Chloe once thought could be an entire book.

It was starting to feel hopeless indeed. Far worse than when they first started to find their rhythm as the Barden Bellas during the first of her many senior years.

At times like this, Chloe would pick up her phone, or open her laptop, and lock herself up in her room to talk to Aubrey. She used to be the one nervous and fearful, the one who wanted to see that her Bellas career ended on a high note while Chloe was the one who reassured her.

Now, Chloe was finding herself in Aubrey's shoes. And while Stacie was doing a good job reassuring her, the brunette's attention was still most definitely split between her own future and the future of the current Barden Bellas.

"Chlo, just breathe, okay?" Aubrey said with a huff as she tried her best to ignore the noises going on behind her. "And the offer still stands. If you need some shaping up with the team, you have me. I have two hands to help pick you guys up and whip you into shape. I find having a whistle also helps a lot."

Chloe chuckled, pulling her knees closer to her chest as leaned on her headboard, her laptop currently sitting atop a stack of two textbooks and her Russian Lit notebook on her bed. "Thanks Bree. I don't think we need drastic measures just yet."

"Just saying." Aubrey replied and Chloe wasn't entirely sure if her best friend was joking or was serious about the entire thing. "But do tell me about that munchkin you're crushing on. How's the progress on that?"

"Wha- I… It's nothing like that Bree." Chloe replied, trying to hide the creeping blush on her cheeks with her hand. Did she like Beca? Yes. She adored the hell out of her. But it's not like that meant anything.

Sure they've been steadily spending more time with each other but it's not like it meant anything.

It was all late night conversations every other night. Or like quick notes on the work they're doing on the set list. Maybe sometimes Chloe makes Beca snacks and stuff in case she gets hungry. From what she's heard from Stacie and Amy, she's working overtime in figuring out the best set-list round the clock. She's even offered to bring it to her whenever Beca would disappear form their company to "work someplace quiet" or so Stacie and Amy would claim, but Beca politely declined. She'd offer to grab them from Chloe instead whenever she could.

It totally wasn't like Chloe was constantly trying to find an excuse to spend time with Beca or anything like that no.

And it totally wasn't like she was constantly craving her company for some reason.

Nope.

Definitely not that.

She heard Aubrey chuckle at her end of the line, snapping Chloe's attention back in time to see Aubrey shake her head. "Sure, you're just incredibly upset the other day about Beca's interaction with the German she-wolf from DSM the other night because she's fraternizing with the enemy."

"Exactly that!" Chloe exclaimed. "Come on, how would you feel if Beca joined us back then and you saw her hanging out with that Treble best friend of hers?"

"Annoyed and distrustful. But nothing like what you'd undoubtedly be feeling." Aubrey commented.

"And what was that supposed to mean?" Chloe threw back, a challenge in her eyes but Aubrey simply shook her head. Chloe wasn't going to let Aubrey go without an answer but the call had to end there.

Something about some poor guy getting chased by a bear or something. Aubrey was back to her usual Commander Posen form just as Chloe ended the call, yelling about setting bear traps at one of the employees at the retreat who brought her attention to the matter at hand.

For the next hour or two Chloe tried to focus on making headway with her scholastic work if not trying to nap. She ended up watching cat videos on YouTube instead, just trying to get her mind off of their most recent disastrous event as Bellas. The talk with Aubrey had helped but it wasn't enough.

The feelings of failure and doubt were hard to keep at bay after all.

As well as the feelings of sadness and fear that she might be the only one still trying to pull the Bellas together. Completely untrue, of course, but the frustrations with their recent misfortunes were all piling up.

It was just a little past midnight when Chloe decided to leave her room and stretch her legs. She wasn't particularly in the mood to head out for a walk but she felt that she just needed to move a little. That's how she found Beca rubbing her right hand as she ran up the steps towards their room at the attic.

"Beca." Chloe called out before going after her. "Becs!" she called out again.

Beca stopped on her tracks just as she opened their bedroom door to find Chloe standing at the bottom of the stairwell. "Chlo!" Beca replied, sounding surprised. She immediately cleared her throat to mask her initial reaction before leaning on the doorframe. "Can't sleep too, huh?"

"Nope." Chloe softly replied as silence filled the next minute or two. She wasn't sure what to say next. She usually found Beca in the living room at this hour, and perhaps that's where she was subconsciously heading. Chloe would find herself slumping down the couch next to her and the two would talk.

But that was different.

That was in a shared communal space of living where they had equal rights to be.

And it dawned on Chloe that she's never actually spent time with Beca in the comforts of her own room or Beca and Amy's shared one other than that one time she wanted to borrow money from Amy and found Beca in the showers instead.

Things have changed since then.

Chloe has found herself more and more drawn to the DJ for some inexplicable reason. And while the teasing fun and all, she still does that to elicit adorable reactions form Beca, there was something stopping Chloe from making any sudden impulsive actions.

Because it mattered to her what Beca thought of her actions and intentions, and it mattered more than Chloe would like to admit.

Chloe wanted to invite herself in and spend some time together that night but she was afraid of crossing any unstated boundaries for the very same reasons. Sure Beca's spending time with the Bellas more and more, but there was a 'but'. And Chloe still hasn't figured out what that 'but' was that was stopping her, that made her care very much, that made her scared of making any mistakes with how she interacted with Beca in these quiet times.

It bothered her for not knowing, but she buried the thought deep for now. She wasn't usually this shy and careful type.

But Beca was different.

Beca was special.

But there was a 'but' and somehow Chloe was sure she wasn't prepared for the answer. At least not for now.

Beca looked at her expectantly for a minute or two before shifting her weight and opening the door wider. "Um, you, uh, you wanna hang out for a while?" she asked, looking away from Chloe.

"Sure it's okay? I won't be disturbing your or Amy?" Chloe asked.

"Oh well, Amy's with one of her men or something like that." Beca mumbled as she shrugged and stepped inside. Chloe quickly followed as she watched Beca jump onto her bed and huddle towards one corner. "Come on over Beale. I don't bite." she said, patting the space next to her.

"Oh, shame. I thought you were a  _feisty maus._ " Chloe replied doing her best German accent as she closed the door behind her and joined Beca.

"Ugh! I'm so sorry Chlo! I don't know why I keep messing up like that in front of the enemy!" Beca then exclaimed burying her head in her hand. "You're… you're not still mad are you?" she asked, looking at Chloe rather apologetically.

Because of course Chloe was mad. Beca was frustrated. They argued a bit. But Beca mellowed down and profusely apologized to Chloe for not having her head in the game.

"I was. But I might have overreacted." Chloe admitted with a shrug.

Beca simply nodded, silence falling upon them once more.

Some days the conversations flowed naturally. Some days they were like this. It was as if they were searching for something, like both were afraid of asking certain questions or that they both wanted to just know everything about the other but were too afraid to ask.

Like some internal conflict had fallen upon them on what to talk about next or something, because they wanted to keep spending time together but there was still a wall that was keeping them apart.

Chloe would usually break the silence, asking Beca of things she liked, of new music, or finding the courage she kept losing for some reason to ask her more about Beca herself.

But that night, it was Beca who broke the silence.

"I don't know if you remember this or not, but you almost got me to join the Bellas before." Beca then said looking a little bit embarrassed. "But I said I couldn't sing."

Chloe simply nodded. Did she know? Yes she did.

She remembered.

It took her exactly fifteen minutes to realize who Beca was when Emily dragged her in the Bellas house along with herself a few months ago.

But she didn't know Beca's name then.

She saw her at a part sophomore year too, looking a little bit lost. Chloe was a little distracted from the usual shenanigans of her friends.

And they ran into each other at a record store sometime around last year, the two getting stuck inside because of the rain. But then Chloe had to go for some Bellas-related emergency on costumes and totally forgot to ask Beca for her name. They talked briefly then about some British EDM artist Beca liked and whose songs were playing in the store at that time.

"I'm sorry I lied then." Beca then said with a hint of sadness in her tone. There was an overall heaviness to it, emotions flashing through her stormy blue eyes.

Five simple words never felt like they carried so much weight before. Chloe wanted so much to ask why it did but instead she smiled, looked at Beca, and said, "Well, I'm glad that despite that you still found your way to us."

_To me._

Beca chuckled and said nothing more about the matter. Instead, she changed the subject to Cynthia Rose and how she was doing now.

And before long, their conversations seamlessly flowed from one to the other once again.

Chloe soon found herself drifting off to sleep next to Beca, who shifted a bit. "Hmmm, don't leave me now Beca. You keep sneaking out, don't think I've'nt noticed. Promise you'll be here when I wake huuuuppp" she said as she tried to stifle a yawn.

"I'm tryna' put my blanket around you, dummy." Beca commented with a chuckle. "Besides, where on earth would I go?" she heard Beca ask.

But Chloe didn't have the strength to respond to her question anymore.

The thoughts she kept fighting, the fears that have been taking over her, they slipped away in Beca's company.

* * *

Beca found herself smiling as she waited for a response from Chloe but got nothing.

Instead, the usually bubbly redhead was all tuckered out for once. Sleeping peacefully next to her side.

Beca made sure for the umpteenth time that Chloe was all warm and covered by her blanket before sneaking another look on her face to make sure she didn't wake her up. She was thankful that Amy and Stacie have been busy with Jesse lately. The trio having proclaimed themselves to be Beca's earthly guardians. They wanted to help however they could with her trials and with the matter of the reapers, especially since the last one seemed to have Emily on edge yet again. Lilly promised to help them when needed while Benji tried to keep himself away, afraid he'd slip up with some information he wasn't allowed to divulge.

Sure, Beca was thankful for the peace of the moment her friends had unwittingly afforded her with Chloe. But she was worried too. For them, especially since Beca didn't want to put them in any sort of dangerous situation. And for herself too.

It was hard to fight the overwhelming feeling that the entirety of her predicament gave her but more and more, she was starting to let go of the thought and the fear, and started to enjoy herself. If this was just a freebie before her Fate was decided – to heaven or hell – then she would make the most of it.

She never thought she would find something special with the Bellas. She most definitely did not expect to find whatever it was that she had found with Chloe. It filled her with great sadness and regret whenever she thought of how things could have originally been different. If she hadn't lied back during her first original meeting with Chloe, or if she had been more willing and open to try.

But she can't do much about that anymore.

The past was the past, it's all over and done. She could regret all she wants, she could feel the misery of letting all her 'what if's consume her, or she could focus on what fleeting moment she had now. Memorize every detail of every memory she made and treasure them forever. We can't turn back the time and relive the past, after all, despite her reliving this year of her life. As for the future? It's still pretty much still unknown.

All she had was the  _now_. So she had to make the most of it.

And she'd rather have the memories to miss along with the people she made them with rather than spend an eternity in some after life with regret of things she let pass her by.

Perhaps it was true what they say. The best things in life were the unexpected. "Still can't believe I nearly missed out on them too." Beca found herself saying before sleep started catching up to her two.

Because that's what the Bellas were. That's what Chloe was. A family she never thought she'd have. If not for the weird second chance of a trial with its deadline, then she would have completely let all of it slip through her fingertips all because she was too afraid to live. All because she didn't allow herself to think of anything other than that dream she chased after.

Beca took a deep breath and smiled. It felt all bittersweet, but she'd rather have that than nothing at all.

She only wished she had more time.

But alas, time wasn't on her side on this one.

She was just thankful for whatever scrapes and morsels she was given to spare.

She took one last glance at Chloe, her melancholic smile turning into a lighter one as she absentmindedly leaned in to give her a sweet gentle kiss on the cheek before sliding down under her covers, her head on her pillows turning her back away from Chloe before letting sleep take complete hold of her.

Except that didn't happen either.

Because a sudden realization had hit her like a lightning bolt, with all sorts of feelings bubbling up to the surface, stirring something inside of her.

_Mitchell, what did you just do?!_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As I'm still currently working on a few things, I'm reducing my upload schedule to once a week (Friday) – let's see if I can keep it up… or if I can go back to my daily updates? Thanks for the patience guys. I do miss writing and I want to do as much of it as I can once again. :)
> 
> UPNEXT: A Halloween Party; Some Complications?; A Realization; More Bechloe!
> 
> PS: Honest confessions, I nearly quit (deleted) this fic because I had no time to write the past couple of months and I hated leaving unfinished work behind... but then I was going through old comments and reviews, and found ones for this fic. They kept me going. It's thanks to you guys this story will see its end ;)


	13. Moonlit Spells of Mayhem and Honesty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really tryna' make it up to you guys. :)
> 
> Here's chapter 13 featuring a Halloween party or two, honest confessions, a Beca that's not at all oblivious, and Kommissar tryna sink her teeth into her prey?
> 
> Enjoy! :D

Chloe was dressed to slay in her costume. She was planning to dress up as a devil that Halloween but Emily made some weird passing comment about having to deal with one already that she didn't know Chloe heard and it made her change her mind.

For some reason, when someone says devil she thinks of the Kommissar and she most definitely did not want to be associated with that.

Instead she had asked for help on finding a different costume instead and Emily happily volunteered her services, a thought having occurred to the girl as she excitedly fussed around Chloe.

"And who is she supposed to be? Cupid?" Stacie had asked earlier as the Bellas were putting up finishing touches for the Halloween bash they were throwing. She looked like she was ready to slay herself dressed as the sexiest witch Chloe had ever seen.

Emily, who was dressed in some kind of fancy robe the most realistic set of wings Chloe's ever seen, huffed in response. She looked so regal with her angel's outfit was the Bellas were fawning over how soft it was and how the feathers were so smooth and all while trying to check that all the details were right in Chloe's costume. "Nope, even better."

"Okay, then who is she dressed up as Legacy?" Amy, who was dressed as the Queen of Hearts, had pressed on.

"Fate." had been Emily's proud reply.

"Fate, huh?" Chloe asked herself as she watched her reflection in the mirror of her bathroom, the red robes flowing gracefully around her curves, her hair cascading down in a way she never though were possible – she should definitely let Emily do her hair more often – with her own set of wings that didn't quite compare to Emily's but beautiful none the less. Being the most senior Bella had its perks, including having the master's bedroom with the master's bathroom inside. Sure, Beca and Amy practically had a loft upstairs, but they were pressed for spaces in the bathroom and their closets. It also provided her all the levels of privacy she needed.

Including hiding in her own bathroom while a party was going on downstairs.

But that mattered very little to her at the moment.

What mattered to Chloe was how Beca was all being fidgety that entire week. And Chloe would have asked, but she already knew the answer.

What it was that was bugging Beca Mitchell.

The kiss on the cheek.

For second or two, Chloe had thought she was only dreaming. But when she woke up to an incredibly flustered, sleep-deprived, and clumsy Beca, it dawned on her that it wasn't.

And sure, it was just a kiss on the cheek, but  _what on earth was that for?_

Chloe wasn't sure. She was a little too surprised, a little too hopeful, and a little too overwhelmed by the sudden frenzy of butterflies building up a storm inside her.

And if she felt this way, boy was she sure Beca was feeling just the same. The cheek kiss completely throwing her off.

Hence the need for privacy.

Thus the loss of interest with the party going on.

Because all she could think about was Beca and all the 'but's that she couldn't quite figure out. It made sense now, sort of. Why she was so cared to push too much, why she cared so much, of what Beca would think or feel of one thing over another.

Chloe would very much like to talk to her about things, but she didn't want to overstep. What if Beca figured it was a mistake? Then what? What if she was worried Chloe realized what had happened and she wanted to apologize or something? The DJ was probably lost with what to do.

And Chloe was too.

_Ugh, why is it always so much harder with girls?!_

Because it was. It is.

Girls were so much harder to figure out. Does this chic just want to be friends and is naturally super nice or what?

She doesn't even know if Beca liked girls in the first place! Even if she did, Chloe was still struggling not to feel jealous over the Treble best friend who almost always calls Beca to check in on her and who has an established exchange of banter that Chloe was envious of.

And really, this was the last thing Chloe was expecting.

Especially when she needed to have her head in the game.

Sure, Beca was kinda sorta what the Bellas were missing.

But she was also the unexpected.

What was missing from Chloe's life that she didn't even know she needed.

And now she couldn't get her out of her mind. She most definitely couldn't get her out of her heart.

At times like this, a girl needed her best friend, but Aubrey was away. Sure they've been talking about it pretty much every night that week but with Aubrey dealing with her own stuff, Chloe's worry over her silly little crush had to take the back seat on the worst of days. She'll figure it out eventually, there was no rush.

She should just enjoy the ride.

But why was it always like this? Like some kind of madness was starting to take hold with Beca out of sight, and with not having her 'fix' of interactions with her that week. It was like she's straight up in withdrawal of her.

Chloe took a deep breath, she needed to stay calm. She was probably just overreacting and everything would smoothen out at the end.

At least that's what she hoped for.

She looked up to see her reflection once again and mustered up her brightest smile.

They had a party, she should enjoy it.

What with all the storms she knew she still had to face ahead of her.

* * *

"Glad to finally see the captain getting some fun." Amy commented as she joined Stacie by the drinks table set between the living room and the kitchen area, her eyes on Chloe having fun on the dance floor with one of her old short-lived flames.

"I'm not." Stacie huffed as she turned to face Amy.

"Come on, cappy. I know this puts a dent with our beloved pairing, but at least that guys better than what's his face? Tim?" Amy replied completely ignoring the thoughts trying to push through as she spoke about Beca, Chloe, and their undeniable chemistry. Because of course Amy – and pretty much the rest of the Bellas – had noticed the sparks flying in practically every single direction around those two. Bets where happening on the whole 'will they/won't they' vibe between Beca and Chloe, and Amy was most definitely joining the fun.

But she just couldn't properly enjoy it if the thoughts push through.

The thoughts about Beca's borrowed year. The bittersweet feeling of knowing that when the timer runs out, Beca's Fate would be revealed.

And it's either to heaven or hell with her.

That's all, no exceptions.

It does make it a tad bit ironic that Emily chose to dress Chloe up as the angel of Fate, at least that's how Stacie feels. While Amy partially agrees with her sentiment, she's more hopeful though.

Like Beca's Fate was tied to Chloe now.

But what that meant, Amy has no clue whatsoever.

"Tom." Stacie corrected after taking a sip of her drink, bringing Amy back to their current situation. "And that's not what I meant."

"What did you mean then?" Amy stated, asking what Stacie deemed obvious if her reaction was anything to go by.

Stacie took a deep breath and pointed Amy towards the door where she saw Beca grumpily marching in towards their direction, her hands shoved deep inside her pocket. Beca was pretty much not in costume, not really into the whole party mood or at least the wearing costume mood. Instead she was in her jeans, combat boots, and black leather jacket.

"If anyone asks, she's this useless lesbian character on some web-series on YouTube." Cynthia Rose had said earlier just as Beca with Jesse, being the one who convinced Beca to wear that outfit in the first place. "It's the most costume-y thing we could get her into."

Jesse, who was essentially Beca's ride back and forth from her company's Halloween party since he had his own thing to do in the city, was following her inside dressed in his regular clothes.

"Need a drink?" Jesse asked. "Didn't realize you were already that thirsty? I have bottle water in the car."

Beca practically drowned herself as she emptied her cup in record time as she glared at the guy Chloe was talking with, the two tiring themselves out from dancing. They walked past the group, through a crowd of other party goers coming from the kitchen as they made their way to the kitchen for the snack table.

Chloe was completely enamored in their conversation, relaxed with the fast-paced and witty exchanges she had with the guy he was talking to. In the brief exchange they overheard, Amy – and undoubtedly Beca – most definitely did not miss the playful use of 'honey' and 'sweetheart' and 'darling' with how they addressed each other.

"I think I'll need five more." Beca grumbled in response as the two passed them by.

"What's going on?" Jessica then asked, joining Amy, Stacie, Beca, and Jesse by the drinks table. She looked amazing dressed as a 1940s Supergirl.

"Nothing." Beca practically growled before fixing herself a particularly strong concoction of her own and marching back out, Jesse following her like a confused puppy.

"Think she noticed?" Amy asked then asked Stacie.

"Noticed what?" Jessica then asked just as Ashley, dressed as a 1940s news reporter that somehow reminds Amy of Lois Lane, popped up next to her.

"What's going on?" she asked.

"A misunderstanding, perhaps. Though a rather interesting one to make." Stacie noted as she nodded along the direction of Chloe dancing with the guy she used to date.

"Ah." Jessica and Ashley chorused. "You do know Dustin is gay, right? Chloe only dated him when his parents came to visit because they still didn't know back then." Ashley then added.

"Wait, what?" Amy exclaimed, caught completely off guard. She's the secret knower – not exactly keeper – of the group after all. How did she miss this?

For that matter, how did Jashley know this?

That question, however, was left unanswered with the sudden appearance of Chloe and Dustin, who also called Jessica 'darling'.

Amy assumed they must have known each other too somehow and made a mental note to ask her later. She was trying to process too much info at the moment when Chloe asked where Beca went. Amy nearly slipped, not about the being jealous part – because Beca was most definitely jealous as far as she could tell – but about where she went with Jesse.

Thankfully, Stacie swiftly changed the topic about something else, doing her best to distract Chloe. It took Amy a minute to catch up on why. If it wasn't for a text from Bumper that prompted her to check her phone, she would have completely missed the fact that it would be midnight in three minutes.

Which meant that Beca's timer would go off in a few.

And that Stacie and Amy needed to be on high alert that no one else finds out about Beca's little secret.

Duty called, they were her keeper after all.

* * *

"Geez, Beca. You walk pretty fast when you're stomping out, do you know that?" Jesse asked as he ran after her outside the Bellas house until they were far away enough. Truth was, Beca didn't exactly notice. She wasn't running, no. She just needed the distance as she quickly consumed 4 more cups and discarded them somewhere on the ground. Littering was the least of her concerns then.

She already had a tiring morning on top of a tiring afternoon to early evening on top of a tiring week. She didn't need a tiring late evening too.

The tiring morning had to do with an encounter with her father. Things never did get resolved between the two of them, and Beca made a sudden realization that she never did get a chance to say goodbye to him either. She had too many feelings about it, considering the tension between them never did ease up, but a part of her was seeking closure. A proper one.

Sure, their history together wasn't exactly the best, father and daughter-wise, but he was still her father. Her flesh and blood. A part of her at least knew that no matter what, even when she wasn't his biggest fan because he left her and her mom when they were little, she wasn't mad at him either.

Maybe not forgiven, but getting there.

And Beca knew she at least needed to let him know that.

Well, she realized that she also needed to say some sort of goodbye to her mom.

Sure, their relationship was not perfect either, but she was closer to her.

And sure, their relationship kind of devolved into checking in with each other once a month, but she was still her mom and Beca loved her.

As if having to navigate with complex emotions for one day wasn't exhausting enough,  _Residual Heat_ was also throwing a Halloween party that Beca was required to attend. Nope, not as a guest. This was work.

And by work, this meant she had to run around behind the scenes making sure that they were well stocked with drinks and food, handling all the melodramatic crap that goes with suits and divas with the definition of huge egos, and apparently the sudden appearance of Kommissar and her merry little band of cloned vocal army.

If it wasn't for an unexpected appearance from Luke, Beca wouldn't have stood a chance against the German Valkyrie who looked like she was on a mission to make a fool out of Beca herself. Luke came from nowhere, sweeping Beca off her feet and swaying her away from the direction of the enemy the rest of the party. "Since it would be suspicious to your cohorts if Emily left with you, I offered my services to keep an eye on you for the night. But just this once, got it Becky?" Luke had said.

"If it makes Ems relax a bit… thanks I guess." Beca mumbled in response. She was indeed very much thankful, though she tried to downplay it for Luke. She could feel the Kommissar's eyes on her the whole night and it made Beca shiver, fearful of something. But what that something was, she wasn't sure.

Whatever it was, the whole thing was draining. She nearly fell asleep in Jesse's car, but the thing that had made her tiring week, well, tiring, was still plaguing her mind.

Truthfully, with the timer on her arm constantly reminding her that time was most definitely not on her side, the whole processing of thoughts and feeling happened a little too fast in Beca's mind.

Sure, she knew that Chloe was important to her. Her fondness of the redhead was too painfully obvious, and the butterflies, the nervous and giddy feelings, all of it, they pointed to one thing. That she liked Chloe.

That she could possibly fall in love with Chloe.

And a future that Beca never thought of or even considered in the slightest should the redhead feel the same way came into view.

If only, she hadn't died.

If only, this wasn't her reliving a moment in the past.

If only the timer that was starting to glow on her hand wasn't reminding her of the truth.

The timer always stung when it appears. Beca rolled the sleeve of her jacket as best she could, the timer peaking a bit underneath. She kept her gaze on the glowing lines and numbers that told her of how long she had left, ignoring Jesse's blabbering.

And no, it wasn't because of the passing discomfort she was feeling on her arm.

But more because of the pain she was feeling in her chest.

_Why?_

_Why now?_

Because Beca knew she can't do feelings now.  _Not now, damn it. Why?!_

Catching herself leaving that kiss on Chloe's cheek was dangerous, not just because she realized something she couldn't stay blind to – her growing feelings for the girl – but because now wasn't exactly the time.

Because she doesn't really have the time.

And she hated every minute of knowing this. Knowing that if she hadn't run away the first time around, if she did something about those many times in the past Chloe path intersected with hers, maybe things could have been different.

She wouldn't be dead.

This wouldn't just be a trial.

And the most she would be worrying about was whether or not Chloe liked her too. If she even stood a chance. For that matter, if Chloe even liked girls the way Beca did or if she was just being extra nice to her as a friend.

Over the course of the week, the very thought of it nearly drove Beca insane.

And it wasn't because of the realization she liked  _a girl_. Nope, it wasn't that. She's had crushes on girls before, she's made that realization already. But here's the thing, they always come and go. Beca never had to worry about them.

Weighing the pros and cons of the feelings taking over her, Beca deeply thinking about all her interactions with Chloe before and how she's made her feel, she knew it wasn't something she could easily let go and walk away from. It wasn't just a passing, fleeting, transitory thing.

Especially now that she's realized that seeing Chloe flirting with other people was making her nauseous, she knew it definitely wasn't something she could just willingly walk away from and escape.

Oh, she knows. Beca truly knows. It's incredibly irrational, this jealousy that's taking over her, making her feel sick. Chloe wasn't hers to begin with. It's not like she can fight for her either or anything.

"Oh Beca." she then heard Jesse say, pulling her in a tight hug, making her hear him this time, quite sobs slowly escaping her as she let him just hold her this time. "I think I know what's going on with you." she heard him say as he went on.

"It's not fair Jess." Beca went on to say.

"I know." Jesse said, rubbing soothing circles round Beca's back. "I know. I can see. She's everything you could ever want, everything you'll ever need, but just the person you could never have."

"I hate this." Beca then said.

"I hate seeing you this way too Beca." Jesse replied. "But you have me, Amy, and Stacie. You still have time for something, anything, even just a memory to hold onto if that's what you want. We can work towards that."

Beca shook her head and pulled away, wiping her tears with her hands as she looked away from Jesse and cast her glance over the still waters of the lake before her. It was beautiful, the way the moon had cast its light upon it, almost hypnotic really. Some kind of peace that was so far away from the tumultuous storm going on inside Beca at right then, threatening to tear her apart.

She's never felt this way before. Not for anything, not for anyone.

"I know…" Beca then replied. "But I don't think it'll ever be enough." she truthfully replied, regret never having hit her this hard before.

"It could never be enough even when it has to be."

* * *

The party was most definitely dying down, or so Chloe thought. They still had a couple of guests over, but the music wasn't paying as loudly as it was. Most of everyone who was left were tired, and just hanging out by the living room too. A couple of the Bellas even made their way back into their own bedrooms, all partied out.

Everyone was, most importantly, accounted for.

Well, everyone except for two people.

One was Lilly, and Chloe wasn't particularly worried about Lilly. She'd be more worried of whoever tries to get in Lilly's way.

Two was Beca.

Last Chloe heard, Jesse said that she wanted to be left alone for a while by the lake. Chloe gave it half an hour since Jesse came back to let them know that.

She found Beca sitting underneath a tree by the lake, looking half sleepy, a little lost in thought, but most definitely drunk.

"You're not trying to summon ghosts or waiting for an opportune moment for rituals, are you?" Chloe found herself asking. The cool breeze was refreshing, helping her focus at the task at hand. She wasn't too far gone drunk herself, but if there was any hope of getting Beca back to the house, she needed to her wits with her.

"No." Beca replied sleepily. "If you know how though, I'd like to summon anything that can help me…"

"Don't go trading your soul to some demon, Mitchell. I need you." Chloe replied, crouching down a little to offer her hand to Beca. "Come on, it's freezing cold here. Let's go back to the house. You look like you need soft pillows and a nice warm bed to relax."

Beca simply nodded while looking at Chloe in awe. The two nearly tumbled down back into the house, Cynthia Rose spotting them when they got near and helping Chloe get Beca into her own room.

But with the numerous flights of stairs and their various states of inebriation taken into account, they decided to stick to Chloe's bedroom on the second floor. It was, after all, more accessible.

Getting Beca ready for bed was rather an ungraceful affair, Chloe struggling to get her leather jacket off as well as her boots, this despite Beca staying as still as possible, eyelids blinking fast as she did her best to fight off sleep, humming to herself.

"You should go back down and-and enjoy shumore." Beca then said just as Chloe tried to get her to get up, lay her head on a pillow, and let her get under the covers.

"I'm tired myself Beca. Besides, what if I just want to stay here with you. I miss our late night conversations, you've been dodgy for the entire week. Or you know, just be here in silence with you. I just… I missed you."

"I misshyoutoo." Beca groggily slurred as a reply.

"So what are you thinking? Tell me. You look too deep in thought." Chloe said with a sigh, tucking away a few loose strands of Beca's hair behind her ear to clear her face.

Beca sighed and cleared her throat, mustering as much strength as she could to talk properly. "How can you tell I'm thinking of something?"

"I just can." Chloe adamantly replied, curling her legs and tucking it to her side as she propped herself up on her bed next to Beca. "So what is it?"

"Ish nothing…" Beca replied as she stifled a yawn.

"It's something." Chloe noted in a whisper. She had a feeling on what it could be, and she wasn't entirely sure herself on how to broach the topic. It was frustrating, the whole dancing around the topic.

But what else was Chloe to do?

On some days, Beca was this amazing musically talented human being who goes from badass DJ to adorable friend in ten seconds flat. On others, she's this great, complex mystery that Chloe's trying to figure out.

"Fine. Tis something." Beca replied, and Chloe couldn't help but chuckle.

"Did you just say 'tis'? Who are you, Shakespeare?"

Beca reach for a pillow and clumsily, lightly, slapped Chloe on the arm with it before losing her grip on it. Chloe picked the pillow and tossed it back to the corner from where Beca grabbed it. "So what is it?" she pushed.

"Hmmm, I toldyoushisnoshing" Beca mumbled as she turned to her side, facing Chloe. Heavy lids finding victory as Beca's eyes remained shut.

"Come on Beca, you can tell me, it's not like we'll end up remembering in the morning." Chloe said, urging her to keep talking. She didn't want for the moment to slip them by now. "Is it something embarrassing?"

"I guess… maybe… I dunno…" Beca hummed as a reply.

"What is it then? Let's figure it out." Chloe then said, shaking Beca a bit to make sure she's not yet asleep.

Beca's eyes opened for one moment, briefly glancing at Chloe before looking away and hiding her face in the pillow. "But what if you remember?"

"I probably won't…." Chloe replied with a chuckle. Truth be told, she was afraid that she actually won't. "You either..." she added, noting how drunk they actually both were.

"But what if it's important?" Beca asked softly, and rather adorably, still hiding her face in the pillow.

Chloe took a deep breath and calmed herself, calmed her heart that was slowly racing with thoughts of Beca possibly telling her about how she felt or about the kiss. "If it's important that you want me to remember then I will." she said with a conviction that rang true to every word she had just uttered.

Beca chuckled and looked up, her stormy blue eyes looking straight at Chloe, ever unreadable. A mixture of emotions kept flashing by, hurt, anger, regret, heartbreak, awe, and what could possibly be hints of love. She took a deep breath and sighed, and Chloe knew that whatever words leave her in the next couple of seconds would forever be engraved in her memory.

Beca spoke softly, cracks appearing in the masks she wore to hide her fragile heart, every word sinking into Chloe's own heart despite the slight slurring of her words. "I'm jealous of the one who gets to win your heart; I envy that fool who probabwee doeshn't know how to wuv you."

Beca smiled at her a bittersweet smile. "You're everything Chlo… everything I ever wanted that I didn't know, everything I'll miss, everything I needed… your'e like, perfect, perfect with your imperfections and your manic crazy stunts and ideas and just perfect for me… but I'll never have you… how can I? How can I with the our situation… you're everything Chlo… and you just had to be everything I can never have or hold onto, and goddamit it isn't fair how you're just so, so breathtakingly beautiful it hurts. Like literally, does that even make sense?" Beca went on as she did her best to fight the sleep that was taking over her, fighting hard for its hold of Beca's tired mind and heart. "I dunno, but I just… it's a paradox ya' know? And I just… ugh, I hate it! This borrowed time and all… but I kinda love it too because then I get to have you in my life and I think this ache, this yearning, is enough… it'll have to be… 'cause I'd rather have this to hold onto, any tiny piece of you I could take with me even if it's just a memory, I'll take it…"

Chloe looked at Beca lost in words. She didn't know how to feel about what she had just said.

If anything, Beca's sentiments only made Chloe the more confused about their situation.

Can't she see? Can't she feel? Can't she understand how much she mattered to Chloe?

And Chloe wanted to be angry, feeling a bit emotional herself. It's been a long week, a long night, and then this. She wanted to give Beca a piece of her own mind right then and there but it would have been for naught.

What with Beca falling asleep immediately after her heartfelt confession.

"You're really an idiot, you know?" was all that Chloe could say.

There would be another day to clarify things.

At least she hoped.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I mean, I did say I'm trying to get back to my usual daily updates right? Don't get too used to it yet, no promises here, but I will try! Also, this fic will stay at 25 chapters, I can't push it past 30 with the little time I have to write :P Still, your comments and reviews are always appreciated! :D
> 
> Fun fact, Supergirl and Lois Lane are a thing in the DC Comics Bombshells. ;)
> 
> PS: My own frustrations over something happening the past couple of months in my own life may be slipping through Chloe's POV there…. and Beca's… and partially Amy's… any guesses? If you wanna chat, hit me up on tumblr (thehypotensivegrad) or twitter (hypotensivegrad) or my PMs here ;)


	14. When You're Living on Borrowed Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here's chapter 14! It's mostly just on Emily's POV but we have a dash of Bechloe POVs thrown into the mix here. I apologize for the delay but I had to deal with helping out a troubled friend who literally lives a thousand miles away and that kinda took a toll on me (if there was ever a time crappy internet connections should not exist, this would be it)… everything's fine now though.
> 
> Thank you so much for the continued support. You guys are amazing!
> 
> This chapter's a doozy but I had to fast forward a bit, so… :D

"You're up early." Emily commented, sounding incredibly surprised upon seeing Beca up at six in the morning. Emily walked out the Bellas house to seat next to Beca on the front porch, leaving behind the untouched evidences of the party last the night before scattered all around the living room, the kitchen, and dining area in the form of passed out college kids, discarded cups, and scattered chips and snacks along with nearly emptied bags.

The Bellas had their work cut out for them when they wake up, Emily couldn't really blame them if they choose to be extra lazy with getting up that morning.

But apparently, Beca was the exception.

And that was saying something. Beca hated the mornings.

"I could say the same thing about you." Beca noted, turning to look at Emily, breaking her silent reverie. "Are angels resistant to hangovers?"

"Are awesome DJs?" Emily three back and Bea chuckled.

"I asked first." she replied. "But no. It's all about keeping yourself hydrated. Aspirin helps too when you wake up."

Emily nodded. Beca looked at her expectantly for a reply but her guardian angel merely shrugged. "I drank water last night."

"I'm pretty sure I saw you getting some of the punch. And I'm also pretty sure Amy spike that punch with something questionably strong." Beca noted.

"It's an angel thing." Emily simply replied. "What? We have some perks and abilities we can use to keep up with the disguises."

Beca chuckled and shook her head. "Why am I still even surprised?" she mumbled to herself.

"Seriously though Beca, what's up? Aren't you still feeling tired?" Emily then asked, stirring the conversation her way. If memory served her right, Beca was wallowing the night away with alcohol. Emily checked on her charge from afar periodically to make sure she was okay. Last she checked, she saw Chloe hoisting her up and into the Bellas house before disappearing into the redhead's room for the night.

Thousands of questions were popping in Emily's head about what could have happened afterwards or what Beca could be thinking about. If she was bothered by anything or worried about something and all.

She wanted to be there to help her through it, figure things out.

If anything, she could tell, the DJ had a lot on her mind that week alone. Emily kept her distance for a while, giving Beca her space to process whatever it was that held her thoughts captive. Now though, well, it felt like the opportune time to ask.

Beca simply shrugged. "I still am." she admitted. "Just… I've got stuff I needed to think about and my mind wouldn't let me shut it out for long."

"Is this about your trial again?" Emily asked, her voice gentle and calm. If Beca's past frustrations were any indications, things pointed to her freaking out about details on her trial.

But Beca shook her head. "To be honest, I don't think I still care about that anymore." she replied truthfully much to Emily's surprise. Beca was two for two that morning.

Emily wasn't sure if she should freak out or not. On one hand, Beca could finally be getting what the purpose of the whole thing was. On the other, she may not just care anymore and often times Emily has heard other guardian angels that the decision to stop caring led their charges on the wrong path.

But before Emily could get any clarification on what Beca meant, the DJ beat her to the punch and spoke up.

"I get it now, you know. I get it. I never truly 'lived' before. I get at least that much. It's just so, so bittersweet. I hate that little bit. I let the bad things get to me before, I let the moments when the spark of my life, or whatever poetic way you want to say it, was frail and close to dying. When my world was dim, I let it taint everything else. Guess what? Now I regret it. All of it. I hate that I closed myself off to protect myself, you know? I kept the bas stuff out, maybe, but I also kept people out of my life. People who added color to it, who made my heart race, who made my stomach hurt from laughing, who cared about me and all. I hate knowing now that things could have actually been better if I only gave it a shot. I know now that I didn't have to be alone all the time."

"Beca…" Emily uttered, not exactly expecting this kind of headway with Beca. The girl was known for her stubbornness, after all.

Beca took a deep breath, stood up, and stretched a little. From the determined little smirk on her face, Emily could see that Beca's mind was set about something. What that something was, Emily wasn't exactly sure.

"I've been going through the motions, and sure, maybe some of my remaining days I'll still get stuck with that. But I want to break free of it. This is my chance, my last shot, to at least make memories I can leave behind and take away with her… leave behind with the people who've grown on me and who I care about, no matter where I end up going. At this point, I really don't have anything else to lose, maybe my soul and where it'll end up, but you know what? I've let life pass me by once already. I only have a couple of months left to set things right." Beca went to say, leaving Emily the more speechless.

In a way, the whole thing should have made it easier for Emily to be Beca's guardian angel. She set an appointment with her dad, much to his own surprise, and actually made the effort. She started calling her mom once a week. Though she may struggle on some days, she managed to balance her internship – giving all she's got so that she could, at the very least, make a small impact and maybe someone could learn a thing or two from her – and being a Barden Bella, working on the final set-list, practicing for small gigs to build their funds, and all of that.

And soon Emily watched Beca bloom and grow.

The days turned to weeks, and the weeks turned to months.

Beca made more of an effort to know the Bellas and the whole thing with Chloe – because there was definitely a thing with Chloe – seemed to have become less awkward and tensed and stuck in cyclic back and forth. Beca's made her decision, choosing to not bring up whatever it was that had Chloe shooting curious and confused glances towards Beca the morning after Halloween but instead – Emily assumed – started to slowly but surely act on it.

For someone who knew she would either go to heaven or hell because of her predicament, Beca was surely living her life the best possible way, building relationships and all.

And it made things unbearably difficult for Emily.

As if at any time she could just slip, the temptation being too much.

As if at any moment she might just end up telling Beca the  _entire_ truth about her current predicament.

"Do you fancy yourself becoming a fallen angel?" Luke asked her during one December afternoon he came to check on things at Barden.

He does have to keep an eye on Chloe and all, otherwise, he'd be a terrible guardian angel.

"No, it's just… She's doing this, giving her heart out all while it's breaking with the knowledge of what's gonna happen." Emily replied.

Luke sighed, "That's kind of the point. Those who fail to live an unfulfilling life are given a test. We want them to feel the frustration, the regret, the desperation. What comes of it allows us to judge them. And if in the end nothing changes, then, well, it's purgatory for their poor lost soul. Different department handles that. As for those who pass or fail, well, they reap the benefit of what they sow."

"I know, but it's just…" Emily retorted as she started pacing back and forth at the corner of the quad where the two were talking. She was thankful it was just after the last day of finals, most students packing to leave for the holidays with barely anyone to notice her emotionally torn state.

"Ems, this is good for Beca." Luke replied, walking towards her, stopping her on her tracks before placing his hands on her shoulders to steady her. "Hang in there, okay? You can't shake the foundations of this test. Otherwise, it'll ruin everything and skew her decisions. She has to make her choices based on her own free will, got it?"

Emily took a deep breath and nodded as she calmed her mind.

This is for Beca.

At the end, this was all for her.

And she knew Beca would survive this, she had to have faith.

* * *

 

"So, seriously, Beca, where'd the literal angel go?" Amy asked as the two were lazily hanging out in their room. It was three days before actual Christmas day, the rest of the Bellas having gone home. Emily disappeared just about two days ago, staying until the last possible moment to keep an eye on Beca who was going to be left behind with Amy and Chloe, the Australian not wanting to dish out the cash for travelling what with the Worlds coming up, and Chloe not really wanting to go home to her ever supportive parents, feeling guilty about her current predicament as a super senior who may have nothing to show for if the Bellas make a fool of themselves during their upcoming competition.

Beca did her best to reassure her, of course, and while she wasn't entirely sure where Emily had gone off too, she did constantly reassure the somewhat nervous blonde who's become one of her best friends over the last couple of months that everything was fine.

Of course Amy pointed out to her that her definition of "fine" needed some improving because while on the surface everything did seem fine, there was the matter of Beca's trial.

The trial she hasn't really been thinking about lately.

Because to Beca, what had become more pressing, more important, was what she left behind and what she takes away from this.

Overthinking would only drive her insane.

All she could do is focus on what's right in front of her.

Beca laughed at Amy's antics, as she tried to remind Beca that things had to be better than fine, t6he blonde getting a little bit emotional and doing her best to hide it.

"But listen shorty, we're on limited amount of time here. Are you gonna tell her?" Amy asked, snapping Beca's attention back to the present.

She didn't need to clarify what Amy meant.

Chloe.

She wanted to know if Beca was going to tell Chloe soon.

About her ever growing feelings for her, about her whole predicament, about everything.

Things have been going well with Chloe since the day after Halloween. Of course Beca remembers her embarrassing drunken schpill. Waking up with Chloe holding her in her arms and in her own room also drove the point home. Besides, Beca knew her limits, and she most definitely knew how to handle her alcohol. Sure, she could barely stand that night, and even if she tried to hold it back, her filter wouldn't work because her defenses were practically non-existent at that point. But when Chloe kept asking her, when she persisted on figuring out what the matter was, well, the truth was just threatening to slip that Beca thought it wouldn't really do much harm to let it out. She was tired. Her mind was tired of all the what-ifs and such. Her heart was weary because of everything she had been coming to realize.

Sure, what came out was mumbled, jumbled mess of slurred words that didn't mean anything because Beca was afraid of telling Chloe the complete truth then. How could she even explain it? That she was technically just reliving a year of her life because she died not having lived it to the fullest?

That's how she found herself that morning deep in her thoughts and arriving at the decision to just screw it, she's done thinking about things. She's told herself that multiple times over, but then she still finds herself locked up in her own thoughts every now and then all just as life passed her by.

Well, Beca Mitchell swore to herself that morning that she was done with it.

She had wanted to talk to Chloe about the whole nonsensical speech she made the night before after the redheaded beauty had woken up, but with the mess of the house, usual Bellas shenanigans and all, the whole thing got buried and seemingly forgotten. Chloe never said anything about it, and Beca decided that perhaps that was for the best.

That didn't mean that she was going back on her decision though. Nope. That's why the last month and a half or so, Beca found herself trying harder. She allowed past relationships to heal and mend, she stopped thinking about the inevitable end and decided to tend to her growing relationships and let them bloom. Especially whatever it was that she had with Chloe.

Because whatever it was, if it was indeed the beginnings of love or some other thing, Beca at the very least understood how precious it was to her. How special it was and how good and light it made her feel.

Apparently, Amy was seeing it more and more too. Stacie as well. And if Jesse's increasingly annoying teasing tone around her was anything to go by, her best friend was catching on to.

"I don't know how I'll tell her or where to even begin." was Beca's honest reply. "I don't what to say either."

"Shorty…" Amy started to say, taking a deep breath, "I wish I could help you with that but your situation's beyond complicated and every time I try to come up with something to help you and brainstorm I get teary eyed, and then I full on cry, and no one wants to see that. You know my face gets blotchy…" she went rambling on as Beca was starting to see an uncharacteristically sappy side of Amy.

"Hold on, Amy." Beca said, trying to warn one of her new best friends to keep it together. "I've seen the face, don't make the face."

"I just think it'll be too tragic if you don't say anything." Amy argued, voice cracking as  _the face_ was starting to become evident and Beca knew she was ignoring her.

Beca took a deep breath. "I know." she whispered. It wasn't as if she completely forgotten about everything just because she decided not to think much of it anymore.

At first, what kept her from saying anything was seeing Chloe's smile. Beca dedicated herself to constantly seeing that smile. But it also made her heart ache a little. The fear of rejection made her scared of telling Chloe anything, especially about how she felt about her.

She didn't want her last days with Chloe be an awkward mess of unreciprocated feelings, worst case scenario.

But then she realized that it didn't matter much to her if Chloe didn't feel the same way. She would take it and respect Chloe's feelings about it.

Because what mattered, no matter how Chloe felt about her, was that she knew that Beca cared about her and wished what was best for. That she wanted Chloe to be happy even when she's not the cause of her happiness or the reason behind her smile.

What mattered was that Chloe knew the truth that might go unnoticed if she never said them out loud.

That Beca loved her and loved her no matter what.

How deeply, well, Beca was still figuring that out.

But Beca was growing to understand more and more each day that those feelings ran very deeply indeed.

Beca took another deep breath and stood up from her bed. "I am planning to tell her Amy. I just need to get my thoughts in order about it."

Amy simply smiled and nodded in response. Beca took that as her cue to step outside for a moment and go for a walk.

Winter in the south never did get as cold as it did back from her own hometown. It wasn't the same as winter in the west coast either, when Beca lived her future life in her own solitude. The winds didn't bother her much as she went around the campus, doing a lap around the quad and headed towards the coffee shop in the medical sciences building next to the hospital that was thankfully up and running throughout the break.

So much has changed in Beca the past couple of months. If she could have one wish, it would be to stop time right then and there, if only to enjoy what little of it she had left. The coffee did little to warm her soul and the coffee shop was kind of a lonely place to be with only a few people there. Normally it's the sort of scene Beca wanted, it provided her peace and quiet, but it reminded her too much of the fact that she wasn't there with the people whose company she now craved. She quickly left with her thoughts quickly playing memories of the past months in her head.

Memories she never thought she would have, months she never thought she'd have to live.

She was thankful for those.

And Amy was right, she needed to tell Chloe. Even if Beca had no clue how to.

She'd have to figure out a way to power through.

She already had regrets about how she never lived her life, about how she could have had this all had she only dared and tried.

She didn't want to carry any more of them either to heaven or hell.

She slowly started to softly sing to herself as she started to hit the stretch of fraternity and sorority houses near the lake where the Bellas house was when she saw Chloe's car coming from a different direction in the distance.

_But I cannot forget_  
_Refuse to regret_  
 _So glad I met you and_

Beca slowed down her pace, watching the redhead carry some grocery bags out of her car, Amy opening the door to help. Christmas would be quite with most of the Bellas away, she would have many chances to say what she needed to say.

_Take my breath away_  
_Make every day_  
 _Worth all of the pain that I have gone through_

But Beca knew that the Christmas season wasn't the right moment. She wanted to cherish each passing second instead. Make good memories both Amy and Chloe, and even her dad and the step-monster could hold onto when all of this was said and done.

_And Mama I've been cryin'  
'Cause things ain't how they used to be_

Beca knew, she'll find her time. For now, she just wants things to stay like they are a little bit longer.

"There you are!" she heard Chloe cheerfully say as she made her way inside and Beca's heart swell.

This whole trial, it felt less like a test more and more each day.

_She said, "The battle's almost won_

And more and more like a gift. Bittersweet feelings and all.

_And we're only several miles from the sun."_

As if she was coming home. As if she's finally found where she belonged.

* * *

 

Chloe Beale is many things. She's the co-captain of the Bellas, a loving daughter, a great and dependable best friend, she isa good student, especially when you ignore the fact that she purposefully failed Russian Lit multiple times to stay being a Bella. She's also a loving partner whenever she's in a relationship. Let's not forget that she's also a great and hardworking leader making sure that the Bellas are in shape for their upcoming battle in the Worlds. She's also resilient and hopeful, because God knows she needs to be with everything that's happened in her last senior year at Barden.

Yes, she's many things.

Confused is not one of those things.

Well, typically that is. Because since Halloween, confused is all she's been whenever she found herself some alone time.

Confused at what Beca had once said to her meant. Confused, in a good way, as to how the DJ was seemingly making an effort to spend time with everyone, still find time to sneak out to God knows where, and spend most of the rest of her time with Chloe. Confused because Beca was giving her a whiplash with all her secrets and disappearing acts and all her earnest actions that's making Chloe fall for the girl more and more.

Case in point, it was Valentine's day. Stacie disappeared to God knows where. Aubrey couldn't be reached. All the Bellas practically had their own plans except for Lilly who was tinkering with something in the basement. Chloe wasn't in a particular mood to celebrate the day with anyone but then Beca Mitchell knocked on her bedroom door and invited her to her shared loft space and listen to some music, chat, and just hang out. It was late, just fifteen past eleven in the evening to be exact, and Beca had just gotten back home judging from how dressed up she was. She looked tired but nonetheless smiled when she extended the invite, asking Chloe to give her a minute to change if she wanted to join her. Of course Chloe said yes and agreed to let Beca change first, she even grabbed some snacks in the kitchen before heading back up. Of course Chloe felt special that despite not being in a mood to celebrate Valentine's day either, she still chose to spend time with Chloe.

Chloe had just won a futile battle for Beca about giving watching movies a shot and pulled up a file from her own favorite movies flash drive on Beca's computer called  _Princess Mononoke_. She was deep at thought at why Beca was acting all fidgety that day and Chloe could feel her heart racing faster. For some weird reason she felt like Beca was going to say something important. For a brief second, she had hoped that Beca would open up about the things she said to Chloe the night of the Halloween party, that she would finally get clarity. Because as much as she wanted to push Beca for answers, Chloe understood that things had to come out from Beca herself. She already knew the DJ liked her, confusing mess of a schpill aside, she just wanted Beca to take her own time and figure out the things that seemed to be weighing her down.

So when Beca started to talk about regrets and her parents being used as an example, Chloe was all sorts of lost in her confusion.

For a moment there, she had hoped that she could finally figure out what was going on. Because as much as she couldn't help herself but fall for Beca, there was something about her that Chloe felt like she could just never reach. Some distant  _thing_ that Chloe couldn't understand.

After a long schpill about failed relationships, Beca seemed to be getting to her point.

But then the fire alarm in the house started blaring up.

A couple more of confusing minutes passing by, with Lilly covered in what Chloe assumed to be soot urging them to head out as fast as possible, and they were all standing outside the Bellas house, with the fire department pulling up in record time just as Ashley and Jessica arrived themselves. It doesn't take a genius to figure out that Lilly had an experiment gone wrong.

It didn't really take long for things to get sorted. Emily, Flo, and Cynthia Rose arrived just as the firemen left. But Beca was gone. At the stroke of midnight, she disappeared again.

And Chloe wished she could just figure it out. Understand what it was that was separating her from Beca. She wanted clarity.

Because it was starting to feel like the closer she got to Beca, the farther apart they seem to be.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wonder what Emily's POV is hinting at??? Next update should hopefully go up next Friday and it absolutely features our beloved Aca-Nazi.
> 
> PS: the song Beca sings is called 'The Sun' by Maroon 5


	15. The Aca-Nazi

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beca discovers that sometimes hanging out can be taken too literally. Aubrey whips the Bellas into shape and tries to dig for what Beca could be hiding.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry for keeping on dropping off of the face of the earth, but other than work, I'm ending my other distraction for good (you wanna know what it is? Come PM me, I don't mind talking about, it's therapeutic).
> 
> Anyways, here is chapter 15 featuring Aubrey meeting Beca in this story…
> 
> …oh, and the bear trap. How did I almost forget about the bear trap?

Beca's heart was pounding, her head still swirling from the events that had just transpired between her and Chloe.

She took a deep breath, trying to calm down, trying not to panic, but Beca found it very difficult thanks to the rather awkward and uncomfortable position she was in.

And by position she meant dangling a few feet off the ground caught in a net used to trap bears in that Godforsaken camp that Chloe's best friend, former Bella co-captain, rightfully called the 'Aca-Nazi', and the shrillest drill sergeant Beca has ever laid eyes on – not that she's ever met one before – the one, the only, Aubrey Posen.

They've been camping out, all cramped out in one tent thanks to falling trees and freak accidents, in what Beca believes would qualify to be the middle of nowhere – it was not – with her body aching all over, the lack of sleep not helping her irritability.

But why, oh why, were the Bellas at some sort of retreat camp in the first place? Shouldn't they be prepping for Worlds?

Well, the answer to the very question  _was_ so that they could prep for Worlds.

Bellas practice was increasingly getting more and more frustrating for everyone, and it most definitely was taking its toll on Chloe. Idea after idea, the Bellas jumped around trying to figure out what was missing from their lackluster performances of late and find their sound.

Truth be told it was staring to get to Beca too. The whole frustration of not being able to figure out what it was that was missing from their group. Chemistry? No, they had plenty of that. The family vibe, the witticisms and banters that flowed easily between all of them. No, it was definitely not that.

But Beca knew for sure that something was missing, the Bellas too. Especially Chloe.

Sadly that translated to Chloe bringing in the big guns – or in this case planning an impromptu trip to where Aubrey worked.

It wasn't like Aubrey was a bad person, no. Chloe liked her enough to call the blonde her best friend, and nothing that Chloe likes could ever be bad, Beca reasoned. Stacie seemed fond – and by fond, Beca meant rather affectionate – of her too. But there was something about her and the way she sized Beca up that was quite unnerving for the DJ. She wasn't quite sure if Aubrey hated her or was still just trying to figure her out.

One thing for sure was that she didn't waste any time at all. She had the Bellas making camp as soon as they got there, had them running around the entire camp for cardio, and had them go over multiple trust exercises while performing one song after another.

Beca was out of breath by the end of the night, but apparently the drills weren't the end of it. They had to make a campfire, make dinner, and be without technology – which made Beca quite annoyed because she was itching to do some mixing to clear her head. As if that wasn't enough, she had no privacy at all. Beca was thankful that Emily, Amy, and Stacie were there to help distract the Bellas and allow her to sneak out around midnight when her timer went off. Luckily, it didn't take much of an effort with much of the Bellas already asleep in the tent, and the remaining few soon losing the battle and following suit. Beca was wrong, however, to assume that everyone was off to dreamland when she got back as she found Chloe fighting sleep to await Beca's return to the tent. Tired, Beca was barely paying attention to the words Chloe was saying as she laid next to her on the most uncomfortable patch of grass – the sleeping bags weren't really comfortable either – but that was mostly because Beca didn't want to have to think about what she was trying to get at.

Experimentations and all.

Because no, Beca didn't want to hope. She didn't want to build expectations.

Not when heartache and loss was the only thing she knew for sure that would follow.

That and the bittersweet taste of a love that could never be.

Nothing about how the coming months were going to be easy.

And the frustrations just kept building for more reasons than one. The past month, she's been thinking more and more about how she could tell Chloe the secret she was carrying. The truth was weighing heavily in her heart and it only got heavier with each passing day.

_So no, Mitchell. If you're going to die and either go to heaven or hell, it's not gonna be because you fell from this damned bear trap!_ Beca thought to herself.

It was the only thing she could think of other than being mad at herself for getting into her current predicament in the first place.

Because old habits were so darn hard to break. Because too many bottled up feelings and too may train of thoughts running through one's head was bound to get people to just lose it completely, give into the frustrations and the anger and let their temper rule them.

The morning after a sleepless night is always the worst for Beca. She found out hours earlier that having to jump straight into another hellish exercise with the Aca-Nazi breathing down her neck was truthfully a far more horrible experience than that. It was barely sunrise when Aubrey was already getting them up and running with her whistle and things only got progressively worse when Beca's irritability hit its peak.

She tried, she really did, but she couldn't quite see the point of all the things they were doing at that camp. She couldn't understand why she had to endure the training from hell that the Bellas were willfully accepting from Aubrey, that Chloe thought was a brilliant idea.

So she snapped. She spoke up against Aubrey, and she ended up having an argument with Chloe. Beca said things she knew she regretted saying as soon as the words left her mouth, but Chloe was already angry, and tired and frustrated herself. Amy thought that urging Beca to tell the truth at that moment was the wisest idea ever. Chloe had jumped in talking Beca's internship as the 'big secret'.

But it wasn't.

It wouldn't have been if things were different.

But it wasn't.

And Beca shut down.

Because as much as she just wanted to live in the now, there was the inescapable truth that was the future. She literally had a glowing timer on her hand reminding her of that. It stung less now, when a band would break, marking another day that had passed.

But oh, did it hurt deep inside.

She hadn't even thought about it, not until after she walked away from Chloe, not after she accidentally tripped off the trap and she found herself dangling from a tree top.

It was like her life flashed before her eyes, and all she could actually see was her life with the Bellas the past couple of months, her endless chats with Chloe, all of that. Her life was fuller and enriched with having the Bellas in it. She was leaving memories behind and she was taking memories with her.

Funny how her dad's words ended up to being the wisest advice she would ever get in life, back when he was still trying to convince Beca to give Barden a try.

_Make good memories…_

So Beca took a deep breath, muttered all her apologies and wished and hoped and prayed that she gets out of that bear trap safe and sound.

All it took was one swift  _slash_ through the rope, Lilly having climbed the tree during all the commotion, and Beca came crashing down on top of the Bellas that all rushed to try and catch her. She let her self stay still for a minute or two to process everything that just happened before Flo started complaining about the weight and great discomfort of pretty much all of the Bellas mangled up together beneath Beca. The only three people not included in the mess were Lilly, who was climbing down the tree, Emily, who tried to help Beca out of the net, and Chloe, who decided to linger next to the pile for a moment or two. She finally rushed towards Beca after Emily got her free but before she could even fully get up from the Bellas.

Chloe all but dove down to reach her for a hug, and if Beca would allow herself to admit, it was probably the warmest and tightest embrace she received from the redhead. She let Chloe hold her for a while, not really wanting to think much of anything else and wanting to give her mind a break but rom the corner of her eye, Beca could see Aubrey handing back a rifle to one of her assistants, making her a little bit concerned.

_Was she gonna shoot me down? SHE COULD'VE KILLED ME?! Wait Mitchell, maybe she's got good aim… That… that might actually be scarier…_

As much as Beca would like to voice out her concerns regarding the matter, however, she didn't want to ruin the moment with Chloe.

Amy was the one who got the pleasure with an awkward cough. "We've been dying for the two of you to get a room already but, as much as we'd like to know the details, we don't want to know all the details intimately well and be your literal bed."

Chloe was quick to her feet after that remark, no witty or flirty response either.

She was just glad that the matter was resolved without the breaking of limbs.

* * *

 

"Something's not right." Aubrey said as she sat in her chair staring at her two former teammates in front of her. Amy looked nervous as hell, trying her best not to crumble. Stacie, on the other hand, was all cool, calm, and collected as she filed her nail.

"What do you mean Bree?" Stacie asked a little too innocently for Aubrey's liking. It was lunch time at the Lodge for Fallen Leaves, the retreat camp that she's been running since she graduated. Beca was currently getting treated in the clinic a few doors away, with Emily and Chloe. The rest of the Bellas were busy prepping actual food.

"When the whole thing with the bear trap was resolved, you two rushed towards the munchkin's side urging her, again, to talk to Chloe about something I couldn't quite understand."

"You mean eavesdrop on." Stacie interjected, but Aubrey let the comment slip.

"She didn't seem to rattled that Chloe knew about her supposedly secret internship either, so what were you getting at?" she went on to say instead. "I'm no fool you two, and I most definitely was not born yesterday, so what was it? Spill, I want the truth. This is Chloe we're talking about."

"You definitely have Posen." Amy replied. "We're definitely keeping the fact that Bhloe's all in love with each other and we want the ship to sail already. That's all, no other big secret, just that we want them to kiss and make out and maybe have babies if that isn't too much to ask. But apparently the Big Guy upstairs just have rules and…" she went rambling on before Stacie elbowed her to shut up. "I… I mean…"

"Well, what did you mean?" Aubrey pressed on.

"We care about Chloe too, or did you forget about that Bree?" Stacie commented, setting the nail file aside.

"No, but there  _is_ something going on. I can feel it. Last night you were too nervous about running behind schedule and not getting the Bellas in bed on time. The two of you are the usual instigators of shenanigans with the group." Aubrey argued.

"Character development." Stacie replied with a shrug. "What? We're capable of maturing. We're not all innocent, naïve little girls, Bree. You would know." she added, throwing a wink Aubrey's way to drive home the point.

"I can't believe this is how I confirm that you two are doing the dance with no pants." Amy commented more to herself. "But good thing I did, the Bellas all owe me…"

Aubrey quirked an eyebrow at Amy and that was enough to silence the Australian about whatever bet the Bellas had going. For now at least. "I also overheard chatter between you and the hobbit about time running out for her." she went on to say before taking a deep breath. "Please tell me the rebellious alt girl isn't going to prison to serve time or something."

"No, nothing like that! Our Beca Mitchell wouldn't hurt a- well… maybe punch some ass face in the, you know, face, but never go to… on second thought…" Amy replied, arguing with herself back and forth because apparently Beca was the type who could get herself on some serious trouble.

But Aubrey kinda already knew that. She would be lying if she said she didn't do some digging about the new Bella. She had a reputation for being rebellious that slowly died down only by her junior year, something about getting her father's attention on herself because of punching some guy at a party who was harassing some street magician kid.

"Anytime of day now? Is the munchkin going to jail?" Aubrey then asked.

"No. Don't be ridiculous Bree." Stacie quickly replied.

"Well then what was with that sentiment? That she'll ditch the Bellas soon? Is she planning to runaway somewhere? She isn't dying, is she?" Aubrey kept asking.

And suddenly, with that last question, Aubrey felt like she had hit the nail on the head. At least, if the silence and the quick exchange of glances between her two former teammates were anything to go on.

"I was joking. Please tell me that the munchkin isn't terminally ill." Aubrey then found herself saying, a million thoughts suddenly running through her head. She was worried about Chloe, but then she also found herself concerned about Beca.

"It's not that, Bree." Stacie replied looking a quite uncertain where to start. "I… I don't really know how to explain this or where to begin."

"How about you two start from the truth? I want to know everything you know." Aubrey settled on giving as her reply.

"Well, just remember that you asked for it Posen." Amy then said. "Just let me start off with saying that we're not crazy, not even a little bit unwell. We've just found that some of the things various religions teach us, well, apparently they're real."

"What do you mean?" Aubrey asked, completely lost with Amy's response.

"That heaven isn't just a place on earth when you're with this fine specimen next to me." Amy started to say, nodding over to Stacie who was trying to hide a smug smile, "And hell is most definitely not just  _this_ place on earth."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that, my dear friends, is today's brief update. Sorry for disappearing again, but I'm getting a second wind of this whole writing fics thing, so hopefully that's a good sign of a more consistent schedule to come.
> 
> That said, the next update will be a bit linger (depends on how carried away I get) but it should come next week!
> 
> UPNEXT: You get a confession, and you get a confession... oh, and the Bellas find their sound or something


	16. The Bella Sound

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Here's chapter 16 featuring the cups song (yay!) and the campfire scene (I spruced things up so be aware of some changes), some of Aubrey's musings, and a moonlit Bechloe talk

It was a nice change of pace, especially with how they've been living the Bella life the past couple of months. None of their fundraising performances went to spec, on at least one of them Cynthia Rose came out a little bit scathed. Chloe's been tense, she was the very definition of a bundle of nerves, practice constantly reminded them of their directionless path, and nothing just seem to work for them. Not a thing.

For a while there, Cynthia Rose honestly thought the World's would be the stage where they come crashing down to hit rock bottom. They've become a hopeless case after all.

But that night, well, it felt like things were looking up. The camp grounds seemed unwelcoming their first night, tonight, however, Cynthia Rose was starting develop a fondness for it. She was starting to see the magic.

It was peaceful. There was a light spring breeze that kept things cool, a handful of twinkling stars above. The camp was pretty much quiet, what with Aubrey making sure they were their only guests for that weekend. The crackling sound of the campfire added a nice touch to the atmosphere, with the Bellas gathered all around it, just talking and sharing their deepest thoughts. Something they haven't actually done as a group in a long while.

Cynthia Rose took a deep breath as she simply soaked it all in. A moment's peace was rare in real life, even rarer when you live with the Bellas, and this was just their time to be. Lunch had happened at a slow pace, everyone pretty much kept to themselves, letting the events of that morning settle down. Beca looked thoughtful, Emily looked uncertain, Amy and Stacie was off having lunch with Aubrey in her office – or so they were told by one of the staff – and it was plain obvious that everyone was just tired and trying to get their bearings.

The rest of the afternoon was spent in solitude for most of the Bellas. Aubrey's instructions were that they do some soul searching until they gather for dinner that night around the campfire. Dinner was rapidly consumed as they talked about stories of their accumulated years as Barden Bellas, particularly the equally tense first year that the Bellas had with Aubrey.

"Apparently it was actually thanks to you, munchkin." Aubrey had commented earlier.

"What do you mean?" Beca replied, looking rightfully confused.

"I believe we've told you before that we only got it together as a group thanks to your awesome mash-up of 'Just the Way You Are/Just a Dream'." Stacie clarified. "What we forgot to tell you was that we were busy going at each other's throats and were on a self-imposed time out because were going nowhere. Chloe decided to turn on the radio, and then boom. You and your magic."

"And that's why your stuff's been the source of our inspiration for set-lists." Ashley had added.

"Until we kinda found our own bearings, looking up YouTubers with their own mash-ups and taking inspiration from that. Learning a thing or two." Jessica had then said.

"We lacked originality though we were slowly getting it but, you know, life kicked us down again. We thought having you on the team would be enough, but I guess we haven't been much of a team lately." Flo summarized, pointing out to Beca what she already knew happened the past summer.

Beca looked a little overwhelmed as she processed what she had said. She ate her dinner in silence after that. It wasn't until they started making some s'mores and Chloe finally tries to get Beca to open up about the whole internship thing.

"We're your family Beca. You've been more than checked out the last weeks, something's on your mind, I know. I can feel it." she said.

Beca looked away from Chloe for a brief second, her eyes staring at the campfire. Cynthia Rose could only guess how much it was actually bothering Chloe that she wasn't privy to Beca's private thoughts then. The two had grown close very quickly that the Bellas were all just waiting for the time for the two to realize that there was something going on between them.

Beca took a deep breath and gave a bittersweet smile as she finally found the strength to tear her eyes away from the campfire and look back at Chloe. Her eyes shifted about, looking at the Bellas rather apologetically as she explained how she was feeling lately, her fears of not living up to the potentials of life, of failing, of not getting to live it to the fullest. She spoke about regrets and how she was afraid of leaving behind many of them.

Somehow Cynthia Rose could resonate deeply with what she felt. The last four years of college had been a dream, but now, well, she could feel it in her bones, now was the time to move on. A chapter was ending, and the time to begin a new one was coming close. It was both exciting and frightening.

But the look in Beca's eyes told Cynthia Rose that wasn't all of it. The sadness those stormy blue eyes hid, it was piercing through her heart.

"If you would've just said something…" Chloe then said, her voice so soft and gentle. To be honest, Cynthia Rose felt that the rest of the Bellas really didn't exist in that moment. It was just Beca and Chloe.

Beca smiled weakly in response, looking at no one else but Chloe. "Yeah, I know. But I'm weird with that stuff."

The Bellas started to share their own sentiments, starting with Chloe who finally admitted to her fears of leaving the safety of the Bellas and to starting a new life. This prompted Cynthia Rose to share her own news of getting married to her fiancé, of Flo admitting to her own fears and worries, and of Lilly… well… whispering something Cynthia Rose wasn't sure of.

Everyone started livening up, when Beca smiled and looked at everyone almost rather teary eyed, "You know, when I look back on this, I won't remember performing or anything. I'll remember you weirdos. It makes me really sad that it won't ever be like this again." Beca admitted, allowing herself to be vulnerable in front of her friends for that brief moment, something Cynthia Rose never thought would be possible. "I'm gonna miss you guys."

Cynthia Rose couldn't help but second her sentiments, quickly followed by Stacie who looked at Beca with a mixture of emotions she was trying to keep at bay. Even Amy was unusually silent, whispering "Me too."

Chloe kept her eyes on Beca the entire time as Beca finally met her gaze head on, but instead of speaking up, she started singing.

_I got my ticket for the long way 'round_

Beca looked at Chloe a bit in disbelief as she smirked. The lines she sang sounded familiar to Cynthia Rose, and pretty much all of the Bellas, as Beca once sang it to Chloe, showing some neat cup routine on the kitchen island while the two hung out in the middle of the night. Cynthia Rose wanted to get a galss of water and stumbled upon them, Beca singing the entire time as she tried to teach Chloe how to do it. Eventually, pretty much all of the Bellas were gathered by the staircase, snooping – Cynthia Rose was sure they all had their reasons for being up too – except for Amy who was just returning from a late night rendezvous and ended up crawling through the living room and hiding behind the couch to get a better view of the two being all cute.

Beca smiled, clearly happy that Chloe remembered the song, as the next line turned into a duet between the two of them.

_Two bottle 'a whiskey for the way_

Cynthia Rose decided to jump in with them to sing the next line, revealing that the Bellas knew the song as well. They were barely halfway through the line when Aubrey joined in too – how she knew, Cynthia Rose could only guess.

_And I sure would like some sweet company_

_And I'm leaving tomorrow, wha-do-ya say?_

Beca looked around at each of the Bellas. She didn't look so surprised that they knew the words. At that point each one of the Bellas started to sing along with them.

_When I'm gone_

_When I'm gone_

_You're gonna miss me when I'm gone_

Their harmony could have never been perfect as the sound and melodies they made reached Cynthia Rose's ears. For some reason, Amy looked like she was barely holding it together, Stacie looking teary eyed herself as she looked between Beca and Chloe, even Aubrey was showing more emotions than she would like. The rest of the Bellas looked to be doing well, however, except for Lilly who had one single tear drop rolling down her cheeks.

_You're gonna miss me by my hair_

_You're gonna miss me everywhere, oh_

_You're gonna miss me when I'm gone_

Cynthia Rose couldn't help but wonder if they missed something as the song died down. She looked up to find Emily looking next to Beca with a rather guilty and torn expression. Sure enough, Cynthia Rose had her instincts kicking into high gear.

Something  _was_ up. She couldn't believe that something had been going on without the Bellas figuring it out on their own, especially since Amy and Stacie seem to know.

But it must be something serious if Amy and Stacie didn't act as the whistleblowers of this well-kept secret. Before she could speak up, however, Beca pointed out something more pressing and crucial.

"Did we just find our sound?" she asked with a relieved smile, more to Chloe than anyone else.

"I think we did." Chloe admitted, her eyes still on Beca.

And there it was again, a stolen exchange of knowing looks between Stacie and Amy that only lasted for a second before Aubrey made her declaration. "My work here is done."

The conversation was quickly picked up by Chloe asking Amy what she was going to do after graduation and the World's but Amy was still too emotional to reply. Beca decided to keep the ball rolling and asked Ashley, but then Amy recovered and went on with her usual highly plausible lists of things she was going to do.

Then she slipped up with a not-so-big revelation to the Bellas, but apparently big for her. That she was in love with Bumper.

Somehow the situation got out of hand after that. Cynthia Rose really wanted to be direct and ask what was going on, what was with all the looks, but the timing kept being off.

Especially after Amy gets herself trapped in a bear trap. Everyone was quickly getting up on their feet to go help her.

Cynthia Rose sighed and resigned to her Fate. After all, she can always get to the bottom of things later.

* * *

"I can't take this anymore." Aubrey huffed, marching towards the door with Stacie quickly jumping in to stop her. She did her best to compose herself, pacing back and forth in her room at the camp, but she simply just couldn't keep herself calm anymore.

Angels… demons… dead people coming back to life for some trial of some sort… none of it makes sense. They refused to answer a few specific questions, not giving away who Beca's guardian angel was telling Aubrey that it didn't really matter.

It felt nonsensical, so Aubrey accepted that yes, it didn't really matter. She was ready to think that everyone drank the Koolaid, that they've come up with some elaborate prank. But Stacie, the most logical one of the Bellas, believed this to be the truth with all of her heart as she earnestly convinced Aubrey that this was the truth, so how could she think it to be anything else but that?

Besides, it explains the hobbit's overly emotional state of being.

Amy was currently in the clinic, with Cynthia Rose and Flo watching over her. Flo ended up herding all the Bellas away from their campsite and into actual rooms for the night, with Lilly being given the instruction to make sure no one sneaks out.

After lunch, Stacie and Amy had a brief chat with Beca and the hobbit seemed to be more convinced that she needed to tell Chloe the truth, they couldn't possibly move forward with something like this hanging above their respective heads. So Aubrey decided to help out, make sure the two had their privacy after their little campfire bonding.

Sure enough, as soon as the little mishap with Amy was over, Beca and Chloe started walking back to their old campsite by the lake. Aubrey had let Stacie take her back to her room, afraid she'd also ruin the privacy by just jumping in the middle of the conversation. She wouldn't really be able to help it, she was Chloe's best friend. She was worried about her.

"It's going to be fine. Beca's going to be fine. Chloe's going to be fine. It'll be fine." Stacie then said.

"Who are you trying to convince, me or yourself?" Aubrey threw back as a question. Stacie simply gave her a look in response.

Aubrey took a deep breath and tried to relax. "How sure are we that the munchkin isn't going to botch this up?"

"She's on a time limit here, Bree. And she really does care about Chloe. They need to sort things out especially with whatever time they have left. Okay?"

Aubrey simply nodded and let Stacie take her into her arms. So much had happened in one day. If the Bellas managed to get it together in one long day, feeling renewed ad reinvigorated to face the World's, she was hoping that Chloe would come out of this just the same.

Maybe not renewed, not even reinvigorated, but surer in love and stronger tha ever before.

One thing for sure, Aubrey promised to be there every step of the way for Chloe with what comes next.

* * *

"Beca, any further and I'm sure we'll end up in a bear trap together." Chloe said with a nervous chuckle forcing Beca to stop in her tracks. The moon shone beautifully above them as they reached a clearing in the woods somewhere. A cool spring breeze made Beca shiver a little as she took a deep breath to turn around and face Chloe.

She's gone through the whole schpill in her head at least over a hundred times to get this right, to explain herself properly. She was scared of telling Chloe the truth, how she felt for her and her limited time both. She didn't want to trip over her words, send mix signals or uncertainties and doubts, because this was important for her.

In a way, Beca shouldn't have worried about it, she wasn't getting tongue-tied at all. No, instead, she simply starred at Chloe, looking so simple in her active wear from that morning, her red hair cascading down, blue eyes shining brightly underneath the moonlight as she starred back into Beca's eyes never having looked more beautiful than ever before. Nope. Beca didn't need to worry about how she said it at all because in the end, the words won't come.

"Beca?" Chloe softly asked, waiting with baited breath to hear Beca speak. It was clear by the look in her eyes, the answer Beca never allowed herself to see. She came up with all of the reasons she could to postpone this moment – overthinking and fear ruling her heart – even when she knew her time was limited and that this is ultimately what she wanted to do.

Beca closed her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself down. She slowly released her breath, and when she looked at Chloe once more, she looked at her with all the love in the world filling her heart.

"I…" Beca finally managed to squeak in as she still found it difficult to speak. "I think we both know what I want to say."

Chloe closed her eyes and giggled as she shook her head. "Hearing it would still be nice. You know, just in case we're not on the page."

Beca chuckled. "I think we've been on the same page for a while." Beca admitted, struggling as she forced herself to speak all while her heart beat rapidly in her chest. At that moment, it was like all her neurons were firing signals. She could hear everything, feel everything. She was aware of the smell of grass, the silence in the woods that was only broken by a random cricket sound. She could feel the gentle breeze with every bit of her, her eyes committing to memory every detail of how Chloe looked that night, how the soft glow if the moonlight caressed her skin, everything. "Chlo… I… Well I… I have  _feelings_  for you." she settled on saying.

And the reward, by God the reward! Chloe beamed at her with her famous megawatt smile. She bit her look as she took a step forward, closing in the distance. Beca stood still, her arms welcoming Chloe in as she wrapped them around her waist. She could feel Chloe's breath on her lips as she whispered "I have feelings for you too, Beca Mitchell. A whole lot of feelings."

Beca could sense the hint of mischief in her tone, and she would be lying if she said it didn't do things to her, but there was a feeling at the pit of her stomach bubbling up the surface.

The other reason for the dread she felt, for the fear and all the excuses, was stopping her from completely diving and indulge herself with the dreamlike moment before her.

Just before her lips met Chloe's she pulled herself away, shaking her head as if trying to clear it from her intoxication of everything that was Chloe. "Wait." Beca whispered.

"What's the matter?" Chloe gently asked. She looked confused and disappointed, but Beca can't really blame her.

If anything, she hates herself for giving Chloe the sweetest of moments and swiftly adding to it the most heart wrenching.

Because she can't have anything with Chloe without letting her know the truth. Because Beca knew, she had no idea how this was going to end. For all she could guess, another accident could just pop up and bring her back to where she started, or just go to sleep and never wake up again.

And she knew, that would be unfair for Chloe.

Unfair to wake up one day with Beca gone.

Unfair to lose her in a senseless way.

"There's something else you need to know." Beca said as she took in a shaky breath, daring to look back at Chloe's eyes. Her eyes that were filled with mixed emotions.

"What is it?"

"Chlo…" Beca started to say before taking another deep breath to steady herself. "Chlo, I'm already dead."

"What?" Chloe asked, incredibly lost at what Beca had just said. She blinked a few times, trying to process what she had just heard her say.

One minute she was confessing, the next, well… Chloe wasn't entirely sure.

"Chloe, I know it's hard to believe. Please, let me explain."

"Explain what?" Chloe asked again, not knowing exactly how to feel. She wants to feel mad at Beca, feeling like she's pulling a fast one on her, but the look in her eyes told Chloe that she actually believed what she was saying.

But why? Why would Beca even think that? Believe that to be true?

She was flesh and blood in front of her. Chloe could feel her warmth, she could hear Beca's heartbeat whenever they ended up falling asleep on either her bed or Beca's, getting tangled up in each other after those long nights they shared talking about anything and everything they could.

She wasn't any phantom, no.

Not a ghost in the slightest.

So how? How is she already dead?

Did she mean it to be a figure of speech?

"Chlo…" Beca pleaded but this time it was Chloe's turn to be at a loss for words. What could she even say to what Beca had just told her?

Beca took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and told her a story.

About a different Beca who went to Barden, one who left without even leaving a trace she was there. One who left for LA and became a successful music producer. One who lost touch with her one actual friend, Jesse, and who kept mostly to herself, only socializing if her job demanded to.

She talked about a different Beca who's lived a life well past what Chloe's known, about one who knew songs that didn't exist yet – "Just like that riff-off that Emily gave me an earful for." – and about one who died in a fire from inhaling too much carbon dioxide.

She told a story of a Beca who's on trial because she hasn't truly lived. One who wasn't able to touch the lives she had too.

And as much as Chloe hated it, what Beca said was adding up.

Because without her, she wasn't sure if they'd find and define the Bella sound.

And without her, Chloe wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to feel for anyone how she felt for Beca.

She wouldn't feel every bit of emotion in its pure unadulterated intensity coursing through her veins as Beca talked about how she only had one year to re-live, how Emily was an actual angel, Beca's guardian angel in particular, and why the reason why she kept sneaking out at night when she's with the Bellas is because of her stupid timer.

"Timer?" Chloe managed to ask, the only word she could seem to form in the middle of Beca's explanation.

And as if everything was a planned routine, Beca raised her arm, five glowing ribbons appearing on it with roman numerals in the middle. "Tells me how much I have left with every single day that passes." Beca explained just as one of the ribbons changed numbers.

"Why five?" Chloe found herself asking. It was easy to figure out that the numbers told Beca how many days she had left in a month, but Chloe was curious why there were only five ribbons with the fifth only half as thick as the rest.

Beca simply looked back at Chloe as answer as the timer disappeared from her arm.

That's when it hit Chloe.

_Five_ _**left** _ _. Beca has less than five months left. She has until the middle of August._

Chloe nodded, biting her lip as she tried to fight back the tears.

Beca looked incredibly torn. "Chlo, I'm so, so sorry." she then said, her hands wiping off her tears, trying to hide any evidence that she was crying.

The effort was futile, they both knew that.

"Chloe. I just… I never thought I'd find friends like Amy, and Stacie, and the rest of the Bellas. I never thought I could mend broken relationships. I never-I never, God Chlo, I never thought… you… that I'd meet someone like you… That I'd find  _you_  in this world." Beca went on, tears she held back this long finally flowing freely even as she still tried to hide it.

"I hate it, Chlo. I absolutely hate it. I don't even care anymore, where I go, heaven or hell. If it's not with you, it doesn't matter. I found everything I never thought I needed with the Bellas. And with you," Beca kept rambling on, overcome by emotion, as Chloe felt tears streaming down her cheeks. She couldn't hold it back either. Not with Beca's honesty.

"Oh Chloe, with you, I don't even know where to begin." Beca admitted breathlessly as she stepped forward and reached for Chloe's hand, holding both in her own. "You make me feel things I never thought were possible. You make me feel happy, like I'm on the moon or something, when you smile. Or when you laugh, gosh, it feels like the sun starts shining brighter. You make me feel warm, and safe, and content. And when we talk at night, I wish it never ends, but somehow we still both fall asleep. Honestly, if I could just freeze time, I would, because that's all I ever want to be."

"Beca…" Chloe managed to say, but Beca kept going on.

"I don't want this to end." she said. "You make me feel alive, Chlo. Like I've never been."

Chloe pulled her hands out of Beca's only to wipe away the DJ's tears herself. No, Chloe doesn't know what to feel. In a span of barely an hour she experienced a whirlwind of emotions and she was sure the storm hadn't completely passed just yet. But she knew, she didn't want it to end either.

Her story with Beca was only beginning.

So why did it need to end so soon? Why did they need the deadline?

It was just so, so unfair.

And they could sulk all they want, but Chloe knew what she had to do.

Because if she let this slip by, she'll have a lifetime of regrets to face ahead of her.

"Chlo-" Beca was starting to say again but this time Chloe didn't let her finish, closing in the distance and leaning in to capture Beca's lips with her own.

It was a brief and gentle kiss. Chloe pressed her forehead against Beca's as she pulled her in her arms. "Then we'll just have to make this last as long as we can. Make the most of it." Chloe whispered against Beca's lips. She felt the DJ relax in her arms as Beca wrapped her own arms around her, nodding in agreement.

Chloe leaned in for another kiss, making the next one last as long as it could.

Because she wanted to savor each moment, every passing second she had left with Beca.

Because she wasn't just going to let her go just like that.

They had about five months left, and on Chloe's book, five months was enough to fill every blank page the new day brings with memories that will stay with her for the rest of life.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ah, this is what heartache does to me... although I'm on the mend so it's not too much of a heavy angst, eh? Or at least that's what I think... Did you guys enjoy that update or what? Comments and reviews are always appreciated. Next one should come in a week or so.
> 
> UPNEXT: An aca-awesome mash-up ;) The next chapter may feel bittersweet but I promise it's a happier tone!


End file.
